


Two Halves

by CK203



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng Fluff, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-05
Updated: 2020-12-13
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:26:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 40,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27408784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CK203/pseuds/CK203
Summary: Adrien is in love with Ladybug, but what happens when he gets to know the other half of the girl he loves so dearly? (don't worry, it's only good things) As Adrien figures out the identity behind the girl he loves, he has to navigate her troubles along as his own without revealing that he knows both of her identities, and he loves them equally. (essentially this is going to be a rewritten Miraculous fic)
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe
Comments: 73
Kudos: 119





	1. Chapter 1

**So let me say this, this is a complete rewrite of Miraculous, that means that none of what happened in the show will actually be in this story, this story is really for me to have fun with and enhance my writing skills, I hope you enjoy and remember that all suggestions or comments are greatly appreciated.**

Adrien watched as the clock moved closer and closer to the end of the day, while he wasn’t very excited about the day ending he also wasn’t very excited about the subject they were talking about. Romeo and Juliett, a book Adrien had already read and reread numerous times for homeschooling, a book that he did enjoy the first two times. He practically knew every boring, and practically impossible to speak, word of the tragedy between the star crossed lovers, however it seemed his boredom would end soon as they approached the final act of the play. 

“Ok student’s I have a bit of a surprise for you as we enter the final act of the play!” Ms Bustier said happily “you will be reading the last act in pairs!” she added “but before you get excited I am choosing your partners, in fact I already have” she added as she took out a piece of loose leaf paper with numerous scribbles on it. “Alya and Nino” she started “Rose and Juleka,  _ Adrien and Marinette _ , Chloe and Sabrina, Kim and Max, Myléne and Ivan, Alix and Nathaniel” Marinette and Adrien chose not to listen to the rest of the list, they already knew who they were partnered up with, both were excited, especially Marinette. Adrien always felt a bit odd around the black haired girl who he  _ partially _ admired, he couldn’t really explain the way he felt, it was as if his stomach was tied in a knot. Even so he was more nervous about being with her because he felt she hated him, he wasn’t sure as to why, but he did know that generally when someone scrambled words and always seemed anxious around you it wasn’t the best sign. He really didn’t want her to hate him, after all she really was a sweet girl with a good sense of humor from what he could tell, at least it seemed as if people were always laughing around her. It really bothered him that someone so sweet, kind and cute could hate him.

_ Wait. _

‘Did I just call Marinette cute?’ he asked himself ‘that can't be, the only women for me is bugaboo’ his mind called out. He turned back to the girl with a small smile and for a moment he felt his stomach rise to his chest, a feeling he was not accustomed to, especially around Marinette, he quickly pushed that down as his mind brought up how he was unable to get close to her despite his attempts, but now was his chance. 

“Ok class, you will meet up with your partners, I don't care where you do it, but you two need to read the book together and finish it by the end of the week” Ms Bustier said before the bell rang for the final time that day, allowing all the students to excitedly walk out of the classroom, ready to relax at home. Marinette however, didn’t exactly know how to feel about this new task that had sprung on her, on one hand she loved that she was going to be able to be near Adrien, but she hated that whenever she was around him she felt like she was going to have a heart attack while she sounded like she was having a stroke. She let out a sigh as she closed her locker only to be met by Adrien's face waiting on the other side of the metal door. 

“AH!” Marinette screamed as she jumped backwards and fell to the floor in surprise and partial fear. 

“Sorry!” Adrien yelped as he immediately ran to help her up “I didn’t mean to scare you” he said as he let out a sigh, upset that he had been around her for five seconds and had already scared her.

“Its… it’s fine” Marinette huffed, not exactly happy anymore “why were you standing right outside my locker like that?” she asked as she took his hand and stood up.

“I was just going to ask if you wanted to come over to my house and read the final act today” Adrien replied “I really am sorry for scaring you” he said with a slightly pleading tone, as if he was begging to be forgiven.

“I-its ok” Marinette replied, giving him a warm smile.

“So, do you want to come over and read the final act at my house?” he asked gently.

“S-ses” she replied “I mean sure!” she blurted, correcting herself “I just need to drop something off at home” she added.

“Alright, just call me when you’re close” he requested before he walked out of the school, not noticing the blush on Marinette's face.

As the minutes passed by Adrien got a little worried, he knew Marientte wouldn’t stand him up on a school project, but he also knew that a part of him was scared she wouldn’t show, that she would just stand him up. ‘What am I thinking, this is for school, she’s going to show up’ his mind said reassuringly, addressing his worry. 

“Kid, don't worry, your girlfriend is gonna show up” Plagg replied as he saw his worry.

“She’s not my girlfriend!” Adrien retorted. Suddenly, as if from nowhere, a clap of thunder shook everything around them, seemingly releasing a floodgate of rain onto the poor pedestrians of Paris. Adrien took out his phone and decided to call Marinette, after all he didn’t want her to be walking out in the rain.

“Hey Adrien” Her voice said from the other line.

“Hey, did you get stuck in the rain?” Adrien asked sympathetically.

“Yeah, I’m soaked” She explained “I’m gonna head home first and then come back in dry clothes” she added.

“You’ll just get soaked again” Adrien replied “The storm isn’t letting up and I have clothes that’ll fit you” he suggested in a friendly tone.

“O-ok” Marinette replied “I’m outside now” she explained. In a few moments the gates opened allowing Marinette to walk into the property of the Agreste Mansion where Adrien waited for her at the door with a large towel. She jogged over and right as she reached him he wrapped the towel around her, she immediately felt better in the warmth of the large building, and it only got better as Adrien walked her up to his room. 

“Here you go” Adrien said as he handed her a hoodie, a pair of sweatpants and a pair of large wool socks “Trust me, I know how much cold feet suck” he said with a smirk. Marinette smiled sweetly “oh and sorry, I don't really keep women's underwear on me” he said awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck and tearing his eyes away from Marinettes. 

_ Smile gone. _

Marinette looked at him awkwardly, her face was bright red and now she had absolutely no words to respond. She laughed semi-awkwardly and walked into the bathroom closing the door behind her, letting out a sigh as she did so. Adrien sighed a little, it only took a few seconds for him to make everything awkward, he knocked on the door gently, unsure of whether he should be doing this or not.

“Hey Marinette, if you give me your wet clothes I can throw them in the drier” he suggested kindly, for some odd reason he couldn’t bring himself to take his hand off the bathroom door. She opened the door a little and hid behind it, extending an arm out.

“Thanks” She said sheepishly.

“No problem” Adrien replied happily as he took the soaked clothes into his arms and walked to the laundry room on the first floor, as he walked down the stairs the sound of a piece of wet cloth made him turn and look to the floor. He immediately noticed that the item that had dropped were Marinettes… panties. He quickly went to pick them up, trying to push away thoughts that would definitely not be considered “PG”. As he picked up the soft clothed panties that were pink in color, he felt another piece of cloth fall onto the floor beside him, as if he had future predicting powers he knew that the piece of clothing that had fallen beside him was none other than Marinette's bra. All he needed was verification to know and sure enough he turned and found her pink bra, likely the matching set to her panties, and once again he was pushing away X-rated thoughts. He blushed heavily, after all he was holding the undergarments of his kind and sweet friend who was also extremely attractive and absolutely adorable. “Get it together Adrien! Don't be a perv, it’s just underwear!” he reprimanded himself, ashamed that he was getting so worked up over something so miniscule. Quickly, he threw the clothes in the drier, making sure to turn it on, before he walked back up to his room, praying that his face wasn’t as hot as it felt. He opened the door and found Marinette standing there wearing his clothes, and he couldn’t have found it any cuter, the sweatshirt pooled down at her mid thigh and her hands were completely covered by the sleeves, the jogger’s gather at her ankles as the fabric that hung off her petite legs dropped over the elastic, even her feet looked comfortably warm in his socks and her flats that seemed to somehow stay dry. “How do you feel?” he asked 

“Warm and cozy” she responded happily. 

“Well don't fall asleep yet, we need to finish this last act” Adrien replied with a smile as he took a seat on his desk chair.

“If I'm being honest, I already read Romeo and Juliet a while ago” Marinette admitted.

“Oh thank gosh” Adrien said with a sigh “If I had to read one more phrase out of this book I might die” he replied as he took a relaxed breath in. “I do have the new Ultimate Fighters game” he said as he raised an eyebrow towards Marinette who seemed to already be extremely interested.

“Eleven matches” Adrien said to himself “Eleven matches and I didn’t win one?” he questioned.

“Yep” Marinette replied with a smile “make sure you know who you’re fighting against Agreste” she said with a smirk.

“Fine, another match, but this time to a game of my choice” he said with a smirk.

“You already chose this game” Marinette replied playfully.

“Fine, to another game of my choice” He added with a chuckle. 

It didn’t take long for Adrien to realize that while fighter style games were her expertise, she could still excel at almost any game you could put in front of her. This came as a surprise to Adrien who thought he would easily win while playing Motorsport Rally, not only did he lose the first race, but she also won the second before Adrien could finally win the third and fourth, with a lot of struggle that is. 

“So what is that? 13 to 2?” Marinette asked cockily.

“Well technically it’s 2-2” Adrien replied.

“So you’re pretending like I didn’t absolutely crush you in Ultimate fighters?” Marinette asked.

“Yep!” Adrien said happily “Ignorance is bliss” he said with a smile, finally it seemed like Marinette didn’t hate him, and he didn’t care what it took, but he was going to try his darndest to make it stay that way.

“H-hey… C-can I… C-can I ask you a question?” Marinette asked as her stutter came back, much to the disappointment of Adrien. He really thought they were past that point which made a whole flood of, ‘she probably still hates me’, thoughts coming into his head.

“Yeah, of course” Adrien replied nervously.

“I thought your dad didn’t let you have friends over” Marinette suggested.

“Well, that isn’t a question” Adrien replied with a smirk. Marinette smiled a little, she had no idea that he could be so…  _ sassy _ . “But normally he doesn’t, I had to practically beg him to let me have you over, he only let me because it was for school” Adrien added “he’s just a private person, which is pretty understandable” he replied. Suddenly a scream erupted from somewhere along the streets of Paris, both Adrien and Marinette looked at each other knowing there was an Akuma out there.

“I need to go and make sure my parents are ok!” Marinette yelled as she started running out of the room. “Wait! I’m wearing your clothes!” She said as she looked down at herself.

“It’s fine, keep them” Adrien said with a smirk “they look good on you” he added. Before Marinette could protest another shriek was heard and she knew that she would need to get out there to transform.

“T-thanks” she said as she ran out of the room and back towards her house.

“Glad you could join me m’lady” Cat Noir said as he gave his partner, his love interest, a smile.

“Hey kitten” Ladybug said as she landed next to the masked hero.

“Looks pretty simple bugaboo” Cat suggested “Looks like a giant fisherman monster, I can already tell the akuma is in the fishing rod” Cat added.

“Alright, let’s get this one over with” Ladybug replied with a sigh before they both charged towards the evilized civilian who seemed to be catching people and then stuffing them into a monster sized fishing net. The two of them already had a decent plan for how to enter any akuma battle, usually that was to contain the akuma and then try and subdue them, usually the plan needed a bit of improvising on a daily basis, but most of the time it worked in some way or another. Ladybug grabbed hold of his fishing rod that seemed to easily be the size of a few busses, she gave her yo-yo a yank which to her surprise made him stumble a bit as he flattened cars that were luckily empty. She gave another yank while Cat Noir watched from his perch of a nearby lamppost, this time the fisherman was ready for her attack and gave a good tug on his fishing rod, sending Ladybug and her yo-yo flying across the cityscape. Cat Noir rushed to save her, moving as fast as possible as he followed her quick moving flight through the skyline of Paris, he quickly grabbed hold of her hand and yanked her into his arms with a small laugh. He landed as if a ballerina showing off their talents, gracefully on his toes on top of a lamppost with a small smile.

“Well m’lady, looks like you’re falling for me” Cat chirped. At this point Ladybug had had enough, she was frankly tired of him flirting in the middle of fights and she couldn’t stand how cute he was while doing it.

_ Wait. _

‘I did not just call Cat cute’ she said to herself, but as she looked at her partner she couldn’t help but realize he was, and for a few moment’s she had completely forgotten the other blonde boy who had taken her heart. “Please, you couldn’t handle me” Ladybug replied, getting lost in the moment. She jumped out of his arms and darted back towards the fisherman, hopping from building to building and eventually landed on top of the fishing pole, with one quick motion she snapped off the smallest part she could find. That’s what made large evilized people easy, they just had to break off the smallest part of the akuma, although this time it was not as simple, when she broke off the piece nothing happened, leading her to be thrown again, but this time at the ground. Cat Noir once again intercepted her and looked at her with a questioning look.

“What do you mean I can't handle you?” Cat asked. Ladybug quickly got up again and started charging with her partner back towards the fisher.

“It means that even if I did like you, which I don't, you wouldn’t be able to handle me!” She yelled, knowing that her explanation meant very little. 

“I still don't get what that means!” Cat said with exasperation as he jumped and punched the fisher, only to be sent 20 feet back, followed closely by Ladybug. 

“Lucky Charm!” She called out, sending a ladybug patterned knife into her hands “It means that if we were dating there is no way you could possibly actually like me! You would never be able to match my emotions!” she yelled, a tinge of sadness coming off of her voice as she charged with the knife. Getting an idea, she once again hopped onto the fishing rod, but this time she sliced the fishing line instead of the rod and sure enough the fisher crumpled down into an ordinary looking man and the line allowed a small purple insect to flutter out of the monofilament. “No more evil doing for you little akuma” She said as she de-evilized the akuma, turning it into a pale white butterfly. “Miraculous Ladybug!” She yelled, changing everything back to normal, except Cat Noir who was looking at her questioningly.

“Do you think that I don't like you for you?” he asked, a scent of sympathy coming off of him.

“I… I never said that Cat” Ladybug replied.

“Well then what did you mean?” Cat asked, confused by the whole situation, usually she didn’t even reply to his flirting.

“Nothing” was the only reply he got at first.

“Nothing, I think I deserve a better response than that!” Cat retorted, starting to get slightly aggravated.

“You do, but I can't give it to you… not yet” she said before running off, leaving Cat standing in the street with confusion on his face. 

Marinette sat on her balcony while her hair was wet from the warm water of her shower, she liked to be out on her balcony at night, especially as the nights started to get warmer. However tonight she wasn’t too happy.

“Tikki, why would I say something like that?!” Marinette asked with a groan.

“Will you hate me if I give you a truthful answer?” Tikki asked. 

“No…” Marinette replied, knowing that her answer wasn’t going to be the answer she wanted.

“You said that because you think he only likes Ladybug and he wouldn’t like Marinette” Tikki replied “and that’s the only reason you aren’t dating him!” 

“No! He’s nothing but a silly flirt!” Marinette replied “I like Adrien!” She yelled a little too loudly.

“I don't doubt that, but just admit it, you’ve been falling for Cat a little” Tikki requested. Marinette’s face scrunched up in aggravation before she responded.

“Fine... there are some moment’s when he isn’t  _ completely  _ terrible and annoying” Marinette replied, Tikki let out a sigh, at least it was a start. Suddenly a leather clad hero landed on her balcony with a slight thud, causing Tikki to hide behind a potted plant as quickly as possible.

“Are you alright?! I heard yelling” He said, alarmed.

“Cat Noir?!” Marinette yelped as she jumped backwards on her chair. 

“Are you alright?!” Cat Noir asked as he approached her.

“Y-y-yeah” Marinette replied, not sure how to address her partner when she was in her civilian form. 

“Who were you talking to?” Cat Noir asked as his face visibly became relieved of any worry for someone he had presumably never met. 

“...myself…” Marinette replied awkwardly.

“Oh, alright” Cat replied as he walked over to the railing and stood for a few moments, seemingly contemplating something.

“I know… I know we don't know each other” Marinette started, knowing she was telling a fat and blatant lie to her best friend “but, if somethings bothering you we can talk about it” she suggested. Cat Noir turned towards her, there was a reason he was here after all, he knew Marinette could defuse any situation, at least that’s what Alya and Nino had told him.

“It’s nothing really” Cat replied “Just some trivial problem” he explained.

“Well I can tell it’s bugging you” Marinette started “Just because a problem is trivial doesn’t mean it’s any less important” she added. Cat sighed as he pondered what she had said, overall she was right, this problem may have been trivial, but it definitely affected him.

“It was just something Ladybug said to me tonight” Cat explained.

“Well, what’d she say?” Marinette asked, knowing fully well what she had said to him.

“She said I couldn’t handle her, that if I knew the real her I wouldn’t feel as strongly as I do already” he said with a sigh “I’m just not sure, I mean on one hand if she’s a mass murderer obviously she would be right, but on the other hand I feel so strongly for her that I doubt I wouldn’t like her when I met the  _ real  _ her” he added.

“She’s not a mass murderer” Marinette said with a roll of her eyes as she lounged on the slightly rough surface of her patio chair. 

“How do you know?” Adrien asked. 

“When you look in her eyes do you see a mass murderer?” Marinette asked.

“No…” Adrien replied.

“Exactly, she’s not a mass murderer… Have some faith in yourself kitten, there’s no reason you need to be thinking you’ve fallen in love with a murderer” Marinette responded with a small laugh.

“I know… it’s just she made it sound like something was wrong with her” Cat explained “I just feel like I deserve some sort of explanation, it’s been months of me flirting for her not even to acknowledge me, but now she says I wouldn’t like her if I met the real her?” he asked “can you explain that? I think I deserve an explanation” he said with exasperation and partial exhaustion, it wasn’t easy running across the city even with super powers.

“You do, but I can't give it to you… not yet” she replied, forgetting in her tired mind that she had used the exact same line on the same Cat Noir not even twenty minutes ago. While she may not have noticed it, Cat Noir did, at first he didn’t think about it much, but soon it began to form a large snowball in his gut.

“Thanks” Cat replied, allowing the words that Marinette had just said to sit in his head for a few moments.

“What do you think she’s like?” Marinette asked “I mean under the mask?” she explained.

“I think she’s kind and caring… I think she’s the type of girl to get flustered easily, but I also think that once you get to know her she’s loving and caring, and just a bit clingy, but in a cute way” He explained, leaving Marinette silently shocked, she had no clue that his description would be that accurate “well, I better get going, don't want to make you fall in love with me” he said, accompanying the flirtatious statement with a wink. Marinette rolled her eyes playfully.

“In your dreams” she said with a scoff. Cat gave Marinette a small smile before looking her up and down.

“I like your clothes” he said with a smirk before running off into the streets of Paris, Marinette looked down at herself and blushed as she realized she was still wearing Adrien’s clothes. 

Adrien laid down on his bed, but sleep seemed to evade his grasp as his mind decided to focus on one thing, what Marinette had told Cat Noir.

“Is… Is Marinette Ladybug?” Adrien asked Plagg, a twinkle of hope radiating through his eyes. Plagg didn’t respond and instead shoved a piece of camembert into his mouth, trying not to comment. “Plagg?” Adrien asked, starting to get suspicious. Plagg swallowed before looking at his chosen, a sigh escaped his lips while his small paw scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

“Kid, I can't really tell you that” Plagg replied “at least I’m not supposed to” he added. 

“I just want this to be over, I want to know her under the mask” Adrien said with a sigh “I want her to know  _ me _ under the mask” he added with a whimper. 

“Well, I can't tell you who Ladybug is” Plagg replied, making it seem like there was more to his statement.

“But?...” Adrien asked with hope. 

“But, you _ can _ hope it’s Marinette without feeling guilty” Plagg responded “I mean you obviously harbor some feelings for her” he added. Adrien looked up to his kwami with a confused look, for once Adrien had heard a caring and sincere tone come from him.

“Would it be totally disgusting of me to spy on Marinette and wait to see if she transforms?” Adrien asked.

“Yes!” Plagg replied, slightly outraged. “What if she needed to change! Or go to the bathroom? Not to mention that’s a huge invasion of privacy!” he added “Tikki would never forgive me for that!.

“I know!” Adrien replied guiltily “I’m just tired of not knowing who Ladybug is, and something about Marinette feels… right”

“Yeah, that’s called being attracted to her” Plagg explained, much to the dismay of Adrien. “Just admit it so I can say that you’ve at least taken something away from this conversation” he pleaded.

“Maybe a little” Adrien responded, a small smile breaking through his lips as he thought about the hour or so he had spent with Marinette. He had seen something completely different, he had seen a confident, cocky and funny girl who reminded him of Ladybug in so many ways. 

“So, why don't you try and learn more about Ladybug and Marinette” Plagg suggested “for all you know, you could be learning about two respective halves of the same person” he added, knowing full well that’s exactly what he was doing.

“I think you’re right” Adrien said with a smile.

“I always am” Plag replied


	2. Rossi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lila Rossi is introduced, she already has big plans to ruin a certain girls life. The biggest problem seems to be the one and only Adrien Agreste has a bit of a problem with her plan.

**So a change in this chapter that I think you should all be aware of is that in this story Marinette’s sketchbook and diary are one book, as I think would be typical of someone who is disorganized (myself).**

“Good morning class!” Ms Bustier said happily “Today we have a new student joining us” she added “Everyone, this is Lila, our new friend from Italy!” She finished as she gestured to a girl with chestnut brown hair and olive green eyes.

“Hi everyone!” Lila said happily “I’m so excited to meet all of you!” she added with a smile. “You remind me of the royal family of Norway!” she added. A collective “Awww” Came from the class as they heard that, and with that she had already wrapped most of the class around her finger.

_ Most _

Marinette remained suspicious of this new student, she wasn’t exactly sure what it was about her, but she knew that something about this new girl was…  _ off.  _ ‘Don't think about it too much’ her mind requested as she looked at Lila with a pleasant smile, trying not to judge her too quickly. The majority of the day seemed to be used for Lila’s own personal story time rather than educational purposes, Marinette didn’t care all that much, it just allowed her to sketch out some new designs. Her creative ideas seemed to blind her to the impending danger that was the fact that Lila was closely approaching, she was only alerted when the book was yanked from under her pencil, causing a dark line to be crossed through the sketch which had taken her multiple sleepless nights to draw out. Marinette yelped in anger as she watched the design get ruined from one simple movement, a design she would now have to try and draw from memory.

“Oh my gosh! I’m so sorry!” Lila gasped “I didn’t know you were writing something down!” In her sleep deprived state Marinette was more aggravated that she normally would’ve been, but she still decided to just shake it off.

“It's just… whatever” Marinette replied as she slumped down a little and held out her hand expectantly, when she didn’t feel the book placed back in her hands she looked over to Lila who was conveniently flipping through the pages, looking for any valuable information. Marinette snatched the book away, but a sickening rip was heard as she did so, one of the pages had been conveniently ripped out, and it was the one page she didn’t want anyone to see. Marinette quickly threw her arm to grab the paper, but Lila was already glossing over the page with her eyes. “Hand it over! That’s my personal stuff!” Marinette begged. Her cries went unanswered as Lila began snickering and showing a drawing to multiple classmates, Marinette felt tears start to well in her eyes. ‘Not today, hold it together girl!’ 

“You know, it’s in bad taste to draw someone without their permission” Lila said with a sting on her voice. Marinette felt her tears start to build up well beyond control and knew she needed to get out, her breathing was quick and her heart was racing, it felt as if an elephant was sitting on her chest. 

“Everyone calm down” Ms Bustier said as she walked over to the group of people now gathered around “What’s going on here?” she asked.

“Well… I was admiring Marinette’s drawings and then she got all defensive” Lila claimed as she produced a fake tear or two.

“Well Lila, maybe it was closer to an invasion of privacy” Ms Bustier suggested before turning to Marinette “but it was likely an honest mistake Marinette” she added with a kind smile. 

“I really am sorry” Lila said with a fake sympathetic voice, Marinette could see straight through her lie, but for the sake of herself she wasn’t going to cause a scene, not yet at least.

“It’s fine, just give me back my notebook before I have to pry it from your hands” Marinette hissed.

_ Scene has started. _

Lila started to roll out some obviously fake tears as she let out a sob, she covered her face as she let out a steady stream gentle sobs.

“I just wanted to be your friend!” Lila cried as she turned to all the other student’s for sympathy, all of them gave Marinette dirty stares and some even voiced their opinion.

“Why would you make her cry?” seemed to be the most common question as Marinette ducked her head and hid from the stares, at least this time it seemed to die out relatively quickly. 

“Everyone calm down” Ms Bustier requested “Marinette I think I need to have a word with you alone” she suggested

Lunch rolled around, leaving Marinette to finally be able to escape Lila and her current gang of sympathizers. After being reprimanded by Ms Bustier and yet it sadly seemed her luck wasn’t turning just yet as she realized she had left her backpack in the classroom. A sigh escaped her lips as she walked against traffic back into her room to grab her backpack, she opened the door only to be met with Lila sitting on a desk.

“So Marinette, here to apologize?” She asked as she looked at her nails. Marinette chose to roll her eyes and took her backpack, that sat right where she left it, before walking out of the classroom. However Lila decided to speak again before she could escape the room “Marinette, I’ll give you one last chance,and all I ask in return is for you to do two things for me. Firstly you must publicly apologize after lunch, and two, just do whatever I say whenever I say it” she requested before taking a deep breath in “I’ve met types like you, the goodie goodies who think that they’ll just be able to convince people I’m lying, but I’m telling you now, you either follow my rules or I’ll ruin your life, so I’d accept my offer” she said with a small laugh. Marinette turned around angrily, she only knew one thing, she hated threats and hated bullies even more.

“I would rather lose all my friends and my dignity before I followed you” Marinette said as she turned around again.

“That can be arranged” Lila whispered with a smirk as she decided that would be the perfect spot to start with her “Ruin Marinette's life plan”, first she needed to turn all her friends against her, and conveniently she had already started with most of the class, and now she only had to focus on Alya.

It didn’t take much for Alya to become enraged at Marinette, in fact it left Lila with thirty minutes to finish her plan, and to think that all it took to get Alya on her side was a fake sob and a few phrases like “Marinette said that she thought the Ladyblog was childish” along with some tears to make it seem like she was physically pained to tell Alya this information. And then bam, Alya was seriously peeved at Marinette. While she didn’t hate her it would be much easier to feed her lies paired with a little bit of planted evidence, now all that was left to her plan was to plant the evidence, a relatively easy thing for Lila to do especially considering that she knew exactly how to plant it. She walked into the locker room and just as she expected, it was completely desolate, finding Marinette's locker wasn’t hard, after all she had remembered to watch as she unlocked it before lunch. Now the only problem left seemed to be how to get the lock open, an easy problem to solve as she knew this lock type was pretty much easy to manipulate, all it took was sufficient and sudden pressure to the mechanism for it to break. She looked around the locker room for some object capable of applying an equal and quick pressure, eventually settling on the metal stool in the corner of the room, she lifted it up and slammed it against the black spin mechanism of the lock, allowing a small click/snap to let her know that the lock was now open, the only downside seemed to be that the lock wouldn’t fully close again, but that was usually one of the many things that went unnoticed. She smirked as she took off her necklace, a necklace that she had made sure to brag about, and then slipped it onto one of the hooks in Marinette's locker. She peered into her bag and found the cherry to top it all, the pink sketchbook that likely held every secret she needed to know, and tucked away in that notebook was a drawing of Adrien Agreste. A well done drawing, but a drawing that could possibly pull Adrien to her side if she played her cards right. She knew one thing, Adrien was cute and she wanted him all for herself.

Marinette sighed as she walked back in the school, today wasn’t going as well as she would like, but at least it would be over in a few hours. However it seemed that her day was nowhere near over as Alya looked over at her with an aggravated glare, it only became worse as she realized everyone held the same glare towards her. She walked into the locker room only to be met with Mr Damocles looking at her expectantly, she sighed as she saw Lila crying on the bench and sadly that only made her look more guilty.

“Ms Dupain-Cheng, is there anything you would like to admit to me?” Mr Damocles asked as he looked at the girl. 

“Mr Damocles, whatever it is, I can swear to you that I didn’t do it” Marinette replied with exasperation.

“Oh and you didn’t call the Ladyblog childish!?” Alya yelped, obviously aggravated.

“Of course not! Did Lila tell you that?!” Marinette asked with an icy tone “Whatever she’s telling you… Telling all of you, they’re all lies! She’s nothing but a liar!” she added.

“Ms Dupain-Cheng! I will not have you accuse another student just because they caught you stealing one of their possessions!” Mr Damocles said sternly, his hands calmly held behind his back.

“Stealing?! I haven’t stolen anything in my life!” Marinette replied, feeling anger soar through her system. 

“Ms Dupain-Cheng, Ms Rossi brought it to our attention that she was missing a necklace of hers, she informed us that you were the last person she saw in the classroom so that is where we began our search. Would you imagine our surprise when we found that the necklace was in your locker or what about when I was informed that you and Ms Rossi had a heated interaction this morning” Mr Damocles explained “Come with me, we will have to discuss your punishment privately” he added as he started walking away. 

“You need to listen to me Mr Damocles! I’ve been set up! I would never steal!” she begged, hoping someone, anyone would stand up for her. Her pleas went unanswered as Mr Damocles looked at her angrily.

“Listen here Ms Dupain-Cheng, I will not tolerate this attitude” he said sternly “Now come with me to my office” he demanded. Marinette’s face scrunched up as her many sleepless nights and her rapidly worsening day caught up to her. 

“No!” Marinette replied “ _ I  _ wont tolerate being accused of something that I didn’t do!” she shouted “You don't need to worry about my punishment, I won't be attending a school that wrongfully accuses me of theft” she said before storming out, a few tears rolling down her cheeks. 

Adrien walked into school happy to finally be done with a photoshoot that lasted from sunrise until the middle of lunch, the worst part seemed to be that he was forced to skip lunch because they were missing the “fierce hour” of sunlight. His stomach grumbled as he walked into the school building, at least he wasn’t going to walk into class late and could instead mesh in with the multiple student’s walking back from lunch. Tiredly he walked into the school building, none too happy to even have to sit in a classroom for a few minutes without the glorious feeling of food in his stomach, let alone an hour or two. When he walked into the classroom he was met with a confusing sight, multiple people huddled around a new girl who held a pink notebook in her hands. 

_ Wait _

He had seen that notebook before, a notebook which likely held the innermost ideas of one Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Not only that, but from what he had assumed it also contained thoughts and feelings, after all from what he had seen she did write in it a whole lot. “What are you doing?!” Adrien asked as he briskly walked up to the people snickering at something from the book, he snatched it out of the girls hands and gave her a glare. “What are you doing looking through Marinette's personal stuff?” Adrien asked. 

“We found it quite the interesting read” A student chimed in with a snicker.

“Yeah, you were mentioned a few times… and drawn a few times as well” someone said with a giggle. 

“Why are you touching Marinette's stuff?” Adrien hissed as he held the pink polka dotted book close to his chest. 

“Well, after she stole my necklace and had a meltdown in the locker room, we were trying to figure out what had sent her over the edge” Lila replied “but now that you bring it up, we do have some concerns” she added as she pulled up a folded piece of paper. “She mentioned you a lot and drew you, we’re concerned that she’s becoming obsessed with you, and that worries us about your safety” she said in a concerned tone that would seem to be true to almost everyone.

“Stole your necklace?” Adrien asked, deciding to ignore her “concern”.

“Yeah, she stole my necklace and hid it in her locker!” Lila replied as she fought back fake tears “Then she had a full blown melt down” she added. Adrien closed his eyes for a second, he knew these types of people and hated them with all of his heart. He snatched the piece of paper from her hands and carefully put it in his own pocket, he started walking out of the class before turning to Alya.

“You’re supposed to be her best friend and you just let them look through a book that Marinette is openly private about?” he asked angrily.

“She called the Ladyblog childish” Alya replied, and as she heard it come out of her mouth she realized how stupid it sounded. Adrien sighed before responding to her excuse and a poor one at that.

“She told you  _ herself _ , that the Ladyblog was stupid?” Adrien asked.

“Well… No” Alya replied as she finally retraced the web of lies she had been fed.

“Exactly Alya, Marinette would never call the Ladyblog childish, because she knows how much you love it” He explained. “The same goes for all of you!” He exclaimed as he looked around the class “Marinette has done nothing but good things for all of you and yet you immediately believe she would stoop to petty theft?” He asked, not wanting or expecting an answer. He didn’t even care if he was wrong... no he knew he was right. Even though he didn’t know much about Marinette, he knew that she would never steal or hurt someone, and also knew that Lila was one of many people who tried to manipulate and deceive people to use them to her own advantage. In his stupor of anger he hadn’t realized that he was out of the classroom and now in the locker room where he stood in front of Marinette's locker. He looked at the lock and saw it was hanging open, he went to close it, knowing that Marinette wouldn’t want people looking through her locker too. He quickly found that no matter how hard he pushed or how much he tried, the lock was completely broken. 

It was easy finding where Marinette lived, especially since she lived in a well known and highly regarded business. He walked into the bakery and found that it was mostly empty, as expected for a Thursday afternoon after lunch rush. 

“Hello, how may I help you today?” a chinese woman asked from behind the counter, he would later find out this was Marinette's mother, Sabine.

“H-hi” Adrien replied, forgetting how anti-social he could be. “I’m Marinette's friend, I just wanted to see if I could maybe talk to her” he asked kindly. Sabine gave him a kind smile, before giving him a response.

“Of course sweetie, her room is just up the staircase in the living room” She explained as she gestured to a door behind the counter. 

“Thank you” Adrien said as he started to walk past the counter.

“Would you mind bringing this up to her?” Sabine asked as she handed him what looked like a red velvet cupcake “She had a bad day” she explained. Adrien gave her a warm smile and took the cupcake before walking behind the bakery. He walked into what he could only assume was the living room before his eyes landed on a steep white staircase, he walked over to it as his heartbeat quickened. He put a hand against the hatch and felt the repetitive pumps of his heart radiate throughout his body, it felt like it took him hours to finally gather the courage to give a few quiet knocks on the hatch. When he didn’t get an answer he carefully opened it and peered inside, it was dark, only lit by the sunlight breaking through the blinds lining the large window.

“Marinette? It’s Adrien” He said kindly as he stepped into the room, the hatch shutting closed behind him. He heard a slight sniffle from the lofted bed and immediately felt a throb in his heart. “Marinette?” he asked, keeping the kind tone on his voice.

“Adrien?” Marinette's tear stricken voice asked “what, are you here to tell me how terrible of a person I am?” she hissed, obviously none too happy that someone was intruding in on her, especially in her own room. 

“Of course not Marinette” Adrien replied as he carefully approached her, setting down the cupcake on her desk “I would never say something like that” he heard a small sigh from the bed before a pained response came.

“Well, you might as well leave” Marinette suggested, sadness flowing through her voice “Everyone believes that I could steal that necklace” she added. 

“Not everyone” Adrien replied as he tried to figure out whether or not she was looking at him. “Can I turn a light on? I can't see anything” he asked.

“Sure” Marinette replied. Adrien turned on her desk lamp and could easily tell that Marinette was laying down while looking at the wall. He walked up a few steps on the ladder leading to her bed before sitting on the last step while looking down towards the ground.

“Do you mind if I sit next to you?” He asked kindly.

“No” Marinette replied, allowing Adrien to crawl onto the bed. He settled down as he sat on top of the covers looking at Marinette’s long black hair drooping down and fanning out across her pillow. He opened his book bag and took out the polka-dotted sketchbook, he looked at the tightly bound dyed leather of the cover, before running a careful hand over it, feeling the naturally smooth and matte texture. 

“They found this” He explained, knowing she would have to turn around to see what he was talking about. “They were reading through it before I got it back, I’m not sure how much they got through, but I don't think it was that much” he added. Marinette sighed and turned herself over to see what he was talking about, when she saw the pink book she wanted to cry all over again. That book not only held her newest designs, but also deep interpretations of feelings and drawings that she would prefer if no one saw. She carefully took the book out of Adrien’s hand and examined it on her own for a few seconds. “They were also passing this around” he explained as he took out the carefully folded sheet of paper “Don't worry, I haven’t looked at any of it” Marinette took the piece of paper and unfolded it, she sighed a little knowing that a few of her secrets were now known by multiple people who didn’t exactly like her anymore. 

“You can look at this one” She said as she set the paper down and closed her eyes, not wanting to see Adrien’s reaction. 

“This is… amazing” he said, shocked by what he was looking at, a perfectly done picture of him in a comic book style, making him look like a superhero in their civilian clothes.

“You’re not mad?” She asked.

“Of course not” Adrien replied “You drew me!” He said happily, in fact the biggest reason he could tell it was him seemed to be the emerald green eyes that pierced through the image. Marinette smiled a little as she saw the happy expression on his face, he seemed to be extremely intrigued by the picture.

“You.. You can keep it” Marinette offered “I mean if you want” she added nervously.

“Really?!” Adrien asked excitedly.

“Yeah” Marinette said, giving Adrien a sheepish smile from her fully rested position. 

“Thank you!” Adrien said happily as he admired the picture some more, suddenly his smile turned downwards into a frown as he turned to the girl.

“Have you figured out what your punishment is going to be?” he asked as he moved his upright seated position into a more relaxed one. 

“He called my parents and told them that since no harm was  _ actually  _ done, he wouldn’t give me a real punishment” She said with a sigh “I think he just doesn’t want to get a teacher to stay for an extra hour on a Friday for detention” she said with a small, but pained laugh. Their silence was broken when Adriens stomach growled hungrily, making him blush slightly.

“Sorry” he said as he scratched his neck awkwardly “I had a photoshoot and didn’t get to eat lunch” he added.

“Do you want something to eat?” Marinette asked, worried about her love interest “I can make us something, I didn’t get to eat anything either” she added. Adrien gave her a small smile, ‘how can someone be so caring?’ he asked himself ‘she didn’t deserve any of this’ furthering his idea that Marinette is the other half of Ladybug.

“Yeah, that’d be really nice” Adrien said with a smile.

“I still can't believe you drew me and didn’t even tell me” Adrien stated “I mean I could’ve posed for you or sent you a reference picture” he added “I mean not that you even needed one!” he yelped, not trying to insult Marinette.

“I… I mean if I knew you liked it so much I would’ve colored more than your eyes” She replied as she placed a pot on top of the stove.

“You’re really ok with me keeping this?” Adrien asked, not wanting to take it if she was uncomfortable with it.

“Yeah, I mean it is a picture of you” She responded “and at least something good came from Lila stealing my book” she said with a sigh. 

“So, I thought that was just your sketchbook” Adrien replied as he leaned on the counter next to Marinette.

“Kind of” Marinette replied “It’s also a diary of sorts” she explained as she felt her head drop a little “it has secrets, feelings” she started until she paused as the lump in her throat grew bigger “it has stuff I never wanted anyone to know” she whispered, almost quiet enough to go unheard. Adrien could see that she wanted to cry, but he knew that even though they were closer than they had been before, Marinette was still not going to be comfortable crying with him in the same room. Instead he settled on putting a supportive hand on Marinette’s shoulder.

“So what are we eating?” he asked sweetly. 

“Mac and cheese” Marinette replied, mentally thanking Adrien for changing the subject.

“How can I help?” Adrien asked, not necessarily referring to the food.

“Well, have you ever actually cooked something?” Marinette asked.

“Does using a microwave count?” Adrien asked sheepishly.

“Not really” Marinette replied

“Well that’s good because I haven’t used one of those either” he responded as he scratched his neck awkwardly.

“Wow, ok” Marinette replied as she looked at him shocked. She went into the refrigerator and pulled out two blocks of cheese before grabbing the box grater from one of the cupboards. She set down all the items on a cutting board before looking at Adrien. “Do not cut yourself” she begged. Adrien smiled, finally able to help with something instead of just sitting down and watching someone else take care of it for him. Marinette waked into the pantry before calling out to Adrien “Elbow macaroni or rotini?”

“I have no idea” Adrien replied, not used to the world of mac and cheese.

“Elbow macaroni it is” Marinette said with a smirk. Adrien watched her work easily, as if she had done this thousands of times, which very well might have been the case. The only problem was the lingering sadness behind her beautiful blue eyes, a sadness that most wouldn’t notice, but Adrien could easily tell. He couldn’t pull his eyes away from her face, something about her just drew him in, it always had.

“Ow!” Adrien yelped as he yanked his finger towards his chest. Marinette looked over to him severely alarmed, once she saw him holding his finger with slight discomfort on his face she let out a small sigh. 

“Let me see it” She said as she held out her hand expectantly. Adrien gave her his hand where a small cut lined the outside of the last digit on his index finger. “Now what did I tell you about getting cut?” She asked. Adrien rolled his eyes as he heard the sarcasm in her voice, something that he was not used to, but something he definitely hoped to hear more of. “Let me get you a bandaid, don't let blood get everywhere” she requested as she walked away. Adrien kept pressure on his finger for a few moments before Marinette walked back into the kitchen. 

“Am I just really stupid to have cut my finger on a cheese grater?” Adrien asked. 

“Not really” Marinette replied “Accidents happen and everyone gets a cut here and there” she added. Adrien smiled, his father wouldn’t have had the same reaction, in fact his father would freak out if he learned Adrien was skipping school to comfort a friend. “Ok, I’m absolutely starving, so let’s finish this”

“Pound it!” Ladybug and Cat Noir said in unison as they bumped their fists together. Suddenly a repetitive chirping told Ladybug that she had to leave the scene to transform back into her civilian form.

“L-ladybug? Can I ask you something?” Cat Noir question nervously. 

“Of course Cat, but you gotta make it quick” Ladybug requested as she held onto he yo-yo. She knew this was important when she looked at his face, illuminated from the large street lights, and saw his nervous expression mixed with how he seemed to continuously shift his leg from one foot to the other. 

“I-I… I was wondering if you might have dinner with me tomorrow?” Cat asked pleadingly. Ladybug’s face softened as the chirping came again, this time much faster and much more urgent. She felt a sigh escape her lips, Cat had asked her to go on a date multiple times, yet this time she couldn’t bring herself to say no. She looked at his expression,  _ cute  _ like a cat begging its owner to stay home with them.

“Alright” Ladybug replied “I’ll meet you at the Eiffel tower at 6” She added with a small smile before she yanked on her yo-yo allowing her to be pulled out of view. Another series of chirps rang out letting her know she had less than a minute to get home and yet her balcony was across the city. She looked around frantically for anywhere to land, eventually settling on a desolate alleyway. It seemed like she couldn’t have gotten there at a better time as the moment she landed her transformation broke. 

Lila Rossi smiled as she walked down the street, today was a good day, she made Marinette have a breakdown and even though Adrien didn’t seem so keen on her yet, she already had a plan to fix that. She didn’t notice the small uprise of the next tile on the sidewalk, causing her to trip and fall to her knees. Her day just got a little bit worse as she looked at the small scratches lining her clothes and hands. She sighed just before she heard a soft thud, causing her head to snap to the left where she saw Ladybug, no not Ladybug anymore, she watched as a red light caught her eyes and soon disappeared, leaving Marinette Dupain-Cheng standing in her place.

_ Day Better. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to say that I'm surprised that anyone actually read this, I was super nervous writing this chapter and I'm glad that it seems you guys enjoy this!


	3. Mutual Agreement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cat and Ladybug have dinner, eventually they settle on a mutual agreement, one which could mean extreme happiness for the both of them.

**This will likely be a shorter chapter, likely only 2000-3000 words, either way I still love the plan for this chapter. I want to add my future plans for this story at the end of the chapter, so stay tuned.**

The next day at school was not easy for Marientte, especially since Lila decided to double down on her efforts and try and make Marinette as miserable as possible. It helped that she had the whole class, minus Nino (out sick since before Lila came), they all seemed to hate Marinette, and even though Alya had apologized to her, the three were no match to a class of Lila sympathizers. All of this worried Adrien, especially now since Marinette was seemingly being attacked by the world itself. First, it was minor inconveniences, all of her pencils being broken by some unseen force, but then it turned more…  _ violent _ . It seemed as if right when Marinette and Lila were anywhere close to each other, Marinette was either falling down or tripping over an inconveniently placed foot. Adrien now refused to let Lila anywhere near Marinette when he wasn’t right next to her, especially after Marinette's head slammed into a locker because of one of Lilas feet.

“Ah!” Marinette yelped as she tripped over Lila’s “innocently” misplaced foot. Adrien was quick and grabbed her waist as she fell backwards, her body was pressed up closely against his, their bodyheat combining together as the pair blushed heavily, he picked her up and set her back down at the top of the stairs before she glared at Lila. “What the heck Lila?!” Marinette yelled.

“What do you mean Marinette?” Lila asked, obviously trying to hide her sly smile.

“What do I mean?! You almost tripped me to make me fall down a staircase!” Marinette replied, anger coursing through her body.

“Marinette, I would never trip you” Lila replied “I mean you are very clumsy, so it’s more likely that you would trip over yourself than for me to trip you” Lila added with a shrug. 

“UGh!” Marinette groaned, she knew it wasn’t worth it to argue anymore. This day was not going the way she had planned especially since she had been dealing with a terrible headache ever since she tripped into the locker. She had to admit it, but she was looking forward to her dinner with Cat Noir, at least then she would be able to relax with a friend, a cute and comforting friend who cold hold her in his arms.

_ Wait _

The final bell rang,allowing all the students to start their weekend, Marinette couldn’t be happier, finally a way to escape Lila. 

“So, what are you up to tonight?” Adrien asked, trying to figure out if Marinette is definitely Ladybug.

“Nothing really, I have a few designs I want to work on” She said with a shrug “I might get dinner with a friend or two” She added, leaving Adrien pondering her answer, that was definitely not an answer that gave Adrien much to work with.

“Alright, well I’ll talk to you later” Adrien said with a kind smile and a wave as he entered the car before it drove off. 

“Well good evening m’lady” Cat Noir said into a mirror before sighing “good evening Bugaboo” he added, unsure of what to say tonight. He looked at his clock before realizing that he was going to be late if he didn’t leave soon, he knew that he could never stand up his lady, especially after she had a bad day. He used his baton to get to the Eiffel Tower as quickly as possible, as he reaches the large piece of artwork he glances around until he notices a woman clad in a skin tight red suit with black polka dots. 

“Well hello kitten” Ladybug said with a smirk as she leaned against one of the cold steel pillars “I thought you weren’t going to show” she added.

“Wouldn’t think about it Bugaboo” Cat replied, a smile already forming on his face. “So, I do wonder something” he added.

“And what's the cat curious about?” Ladybug asked.

“Well… why did you agree to have dinner now? I mean I must’ve asked you ten times before this” Cat asked slightly nervously. Ladybug let out a small sigh as she thought about the answer, she wasn’t exactly sure what had caused her to say yes to this date.

“ the first ten times you asked me, you were so…  _ confident _ ” Ladybug explained “But this time, there was just something… some part of you that I couldn’t refuse” she finished, hiding her eyes because of how awkward she felt.

“You’re falling for me!” Cat cheered happily “You think I’m irresistible!” he added with a series of laughs from his stomach.

“I’ll leave right now” Ladybug warned with a sarcastic voice. A tone that Cat Noir had heard from Marinette not too long ago, but quite possibly a tone he had just heard from her again. In fact he no longer saw Ladybug as Ladybug and instead saw her as Marinette's other half, all he needed to be sure of his hypothesis was confirmation.

“Well no matter what, I’m really glad you came” Cat said thankfully “but first... you need to catch me” he said with a smirk as he jumped off the building and moved as quickly as possible. He could hear Ladybugs giggles behind him, the laughs of joy and entertainment breaking through her usual down to Earth tone. Suddenly he felt himself tumble towards the ground as a pair of arms wrapped around his waist, he felt his momentum stop and bounce a little as he hung over an empty street of Paris.

“Looks like I’m faster than you kitty” Ladybug said with a giggle as she held onto his waist tightly.

“Well, they do say a good gentleman never lets a lady lose” Cat replied with a small smirk. Ladybug rolled her eyes in response, a slight, but almost unnoticeable laugh coming from her lungs.

“Well they also say a cat always lands on his feet” She added as she dropped him, she didn’t let him fall too far down as she jumped to a lamppost and grabbed his foot with her yo-yo.

“Good catch m’lady” Cat said with a smile, as he looked up from his upside down position “You do realize that I’m not actually a cat though right?” he asked as he felt himself carefully lowered to the ground.

“Yeah... and you’re also not a good gentleman, so don't let me win” Ladybug replied, a smirk still present on her face. 

“Alright m’lady” Cat replied “Catch me if you can” he added as he started running towards his destination. Once again he felt his hair float back as he moved through Paris at a high speed, faster than anyone would normally be traveling. He could see the small candles lining the rooftop of a building, quickly he navigated towards it, eventually landing on top of the small roof top lined with the scentless candles which left the area illuminated only by that of many small flames. He felt and heard the slight thud of Ladybug landing next to him, a great aspect of his heightened senses.

“Did you… Did you really do this all for me?” Ladybug asked in shock as she looked over the scene before her. A perfectly set up dining table with plates and a large box of pizza, all around them were candles and a few roses tossed about sporadically. 

“For m’lady, anything” Cat replied sweetly. Suddenly he felt a tight grasp around his abdomen, he soon realized the feeling was Ladybug hugging him tightly. He quickly reciprocated the hug, squeezing her tightly as if he would lose her if he let go. They sat there for a few moments in each other's embrace, something they had never done before, but something Cat definitely wanted to do again. As they both hesitantly separated a little, Cat looked at Ladybug and noticed a few tears rolling down her cheek. “What’s wrong” Cat asked as he refused to let go of her.

“It’s… it’s nothing” Ladybug replied as she quickly wiped the tears with the back of her hand.

“Tell me” Cat requested as he held her close to him.

“I don’t know” Ladybug responded “It could reveal too much about our identities” she added. Cat was quick with his response.

“I dont care” he said quickly, cupping her cheek reassuringly. Ladybug inhaled slightly, trying to stop her inconsistent flow of tears “I want to know what’s wrong with my bug” he added pleadingly.

“I… I just had a really bad day” Ladybug replied quickly, unsure why she was no longer scared to tell him more personal information.

“How so?” Cat asked, interested for more than one reason.

“Just school and stress and everything, there’s another student in school who’s been giving me problem” She added as her sad and stiff expression turned into a softer and more gentle one as a small smile broke out on her face. “So, what did you have planned for dinner?” she asked, trying to change the subject and not having her problems ruin the night.

“Well, I was thinking we could get to know each other a little more” Cat replied “Don't worry, nothing in particular, just some basic things that friends should know” he suggested. 

“That sounds… purr-fect” Ladybug replied smugly, leaving Cat Noir slightly slack jawed. He decided not to comment, knowing that anything he had to say wouldn’t articulate the true feelings of love he had just felt. “So you finally get me to go on a date with you and get pizza?” she teased.

“We can- We can go get something else if you want” Cat suggested nervously.

“No” Ladybug replied “I love pizza” She replied as they both started to take slices and eat.

“So, what’s your favorite color?” Cat asked, a smile on his face, trying to get the tiniest piece of information.

“I would probably have to say… Pink” Ladybug replied with intrigue. “What about you?” she asked kindly.

“Oh… Probably green… or blue” He replied with a slight blush forming on his face “kind of like your eyes” he added confidently, a blush now forming on Marinette's face.

“You say that to all the girls?” Ladybug asked sheepishly.

“No, only one girl” He replied “An amazing and beautiful girl” he added, taking enjoyment in the sight of Ladybug blushing heavily. 

“You dont… you dont even know me” Ladybug replied as she felt her eyes start to sting with the sour feeling of tears. Cat stood up and calmly started walking over to her.

“You’re wrong” Cat replied as he knelt right in front of her “I know you” he added “I know that you can be clumsy, I know that you will risk yourself to save others and I know that there's a whole other side of you that I hope to know some day, I also know there's a whole other side of me that I want you to know” he finished as he put a hand on her knee. 

“How can you be in love with me if you know so little about me?” Ladybug cried, tears now starting to break from her eyes.

“Because I look into your eyes and know that there is so much more that I want to discover…  _ need  _ to discover” he replied, feeling small tears of joy welt up in his eyes. “So, will you give me that chance?” he asked, allowing his hand to gently grasp hers. Their eyes met and Ladybug breathed in a deep and shaky breath, trying to control her emotions, yet failing at it miserably.

“I don't want to give you half my heart” She explained “There’s another boy who’s already taken half” she cried out. Cat Noir didn’t care, after all he was almost certain that the other boy was his other half who had fallen in love with her other half.

“Then give me the other half” he requested “You have half of my heart already, and I know you told me we couldn’t be together because we are superheroes first” he added “but I want my life to be with you, I want to spend the rest of my life learning everything about you” he finished holding her hand tightly in his own.

“What if you dont like me behind the mask” Ladybug asked with worry. She no longer cared that she had fallen deeply in love with Cat Noir over a day and a few spare nights, she no longer cared that she dreamt of falling asleep next to him and waking up in the same spot, she only worried that he wouldn’t like clumsy Marinette.

“I already know I love her” Cat replied “just give me the chance to find her” he begged. Ladybug smiled at the Cat kneeling before her, they were both pouring out their feelings, some were new and yet some were as old as their friendship had lasted. Ladybug no longer cared about her lingering feelings for Adrien, some part would always care for him…  _ love  _ him even, but her heart belonged to her kitten, even if he only held half of it right now.

“Alright” Ladybug said with a sniffle, their eyes locked once more and Cat saw the small smile form as she reciprocated the tight grip he had on her hand. “How will you find me?” she asked. Cat thought for a few moments, considering all the options to find someone he had already found.

“I think I already have” He admitted as he ran his thumb in circles around her palm, he felt her grip on the base of his thumb tighten as she looked at him in shock. 

“What… What do you mean?” Ladybug asked, shocked by what Cat had just told her.

“I… I think I’ve already met your other half” he replied “but I need to be sure” he added as he looked around the small rooftop.

“Can you meet me at the bottom of the Eiffel Tower tomorrow?” Cat asked “not as Ladybug, but as you” he requested.

“How will you know it’s me?” Ladybug asked, knowing that there would likely be a whole lot of people there the next day.

“Trust me... I’ll know” Cat replied with a smile that made her want to melt into Adriens arms.

_ Wait. _

‘Why did I say Adrien?’ Ladybug asked herself. She looked at Cat again and felt something inside of her, a slight shift that told her so much. ‘No, I couldn’t possibly be that lucky’ she thought to herself.

“When should I be there?” Ladybug asked as she finally felt herself control the tears that had been steadily flowing out of her eyes.

“How does nine in the morning work for you?” Cat replied, knowing he would barely get any sleep that night. 

“That works” Ladybug replied with a large smile ‘definitely a morning person’ she told herself as she prepared her yo-yo to leave. “I’ll bring coffee” she added as she threw her yo-yo out, causing it to wrap around a lamppost. What she didn’t expect was to feel Cats lip quickly press and release on her cheek, it only lasted a moment, but it felt like a blissful eternity “See you soon” she finished as she started flying off, leaving Cat with a large smile on his face, a smile that she matched. 

“See you soon Marinette” He whispered to himself as he too started to return to his home. 

He couldn’t have felt lonelier as he landed into his room, it felt cold and dark compared to the warmth of Ladybugs gentle voice. 

“Claws in” he called out, causing Plagg to come rushing out of his ring, leaving Adrien and Plagg in the room.

“So kid, you sure it’s Marinette?” Plagg asked as he settled on a pillow that lined Adriens bed.

“I can't even fathom the idea of anyone else being the savior of Paris” Adrien replied as he flopped down onto the bed.

“And what if Ladybug is actually Chloe?” Plagg questioned with a devilish smirk planted on his face. He laughed as he saw the alarmed look on Adrien's face, a look that said if Ladybug wasn’t Marinette he would have no clue as to what he was going to do.

“Tell me one thing… only one thing” Adrien begged “Is Ladybug Chloe?” he asked, fearful for an answer.

“Nope, Chloe is not Ladybug” Plagg said with a chuckle, sending a wave of relief down Adriens spine. He wouldn’t get much sleep that night, in fact he would spend the night dreaming of the possibility where Marinette laid in his bed beside him. That was a thought he couldn’t get out of his head, Marinette next to him, snuggled against his chest as her soft warmth could lull him to sleep. As he dreamt of that he wondered if Marinette was thinking about him while she was lying in her bed.

Marinette flopped down onto her bed, a content sigh escaping her lips as Tikki giggled a little, Marinette gave her a small smile as she began to speak.

“You’re really happy with Cat Noir?” Tikki asked, more so making an observation rather than asking a question.

“I think I always had these feelings” Marinette explained “I think I might have just been scared he wouldn’t like Marinette” she explained.

“What changed?” Tikki questioned.

“I’m tired of being scared” Marinette replied “I don't want to let a good thing go by because I’m scared”

**So, I have a feeling that with my current unorganized plan for this fanfic it will likely last about ten chapters (maybe more, who knows). I will also add that my next plans for a new fic will be an Actors AU, and a continuation of this story where Marinette and Adrien are much older (college aged or past that).**


	4. Meet Up and a Surprise Cousin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien finally finds out who his lady is, fluff insues.

**This will be a fluffy chapter, in fact the rest of this series will likely be fluffy and have a lot of cute Adrienette moments. There will also be some interesting rivalries going on pretty soon though.**

Marinette woke up groggily, no matter how hard she tried, sleep succeeded at evading her eyes. It also didn’t help that halfway through the night her mind had decided to merge Adrien and Cat Noir into the same person, but she knew that couldn’t be right, no one was  _ that  _ lucky. 

“Are you excited Marinette?” Tikki asked as she circled her chosen, who was groggily sitting upwards.

“More than you could imagine” Marinette replied giddily, only to notice it was five in the morning and yet she felt more energized than she ever had. “What am I supposed to do with four extra hours?!” She cried to herself as she fell back into the soft comfort of her bed, she stared at the hatch that led up to her balcony, she could easily tell that it was still dark and likely cold out, but she had nothing better to do at that point. As the hatch opened she shivered from the cold morning air, while it wasn’t bright out, there was a slight lingering light, blocking the sky from presenting a complete inky darkness. Her chair creaked under her weight slightly as she watched the blank sky, no stars peered out because of the copious amounts of light pollution, but that didn’t stop her from imagining the millions upon millions of stars that seemed to be just outside her grasp. A small sigh escaped her lips as she watched the limited number of cars drive through the streets, even at five in the morning this city was still partially alive. “I wonder what Cat is doing right now?” Marinette asked herself as she felt her eyes start to droop slightly.

“You know you’ll get sick sleeping out here in the cold” Cat said as he leaned on the railing, she must’ve fallen asleep.

“Cat? What are you doing here?” Marinette said as she could barely lift her eyes open.

“Well, I can't have you getting sick” Cat responded as he gently picked her up. “So, how was your week?” Cat asked as he lowered himself into her room, gently taking her with him.

“Bad” Marinette responded sleepily, not sure who she was talking to or why “Not today though, today is going to be good” Marinette replied as she let out a small, but incredibly cute yawn.

“Get some sleep Marinette” Cat whispered into her ear, a smile breaking out onto his face, he gave her forehead a gentle kiss “I’ll see you soon” he said, quiet enough that the sleepy Marinette had no way to hear it, let alone understand the hushed whisper. Cat smiled before hopping out the hatch and back into the chilly night air, he quietly shut the hatch and smiled a little, it was only 6 in the morning and yet he couldn’t find himself doing anything other than sit on a rooftop and watch as the city woke up before him. As the sun rose from the horizon he got excited, the hours seemed to crawl by as he awaited for the moment when he could meet his lady. He could barely contain his excitement, for the majority of a year he had fought alongside Ladybug and yet it seemed as if he would finally have his dream come true. He would finally know for sure if Marinette was his lady, if he had fallen in love with the same girl twice. Letting out a sigh he checked his phone and noticed that the hours had passed and carried into 8:15. ‘Maybe she will be early too’ he thought as he ducked into an alley and transformed into his civilian self. He walked up to the large art structure excitedly, he knew that he was only looking for two things, a girl with black hair holding two cups of coffee, preferably Marinette. He felt the cold nip at his lungs as he inhaled deeply, the early morning sun perfectly illuminating the large tower. He watched it with a slight sense of worry breaking into his mind, what if she didn’t show. Those thoughts didn’t linger for too long as he saw Marinette looking around the park, a slightly worried and confused look on her face, and what seemed to be the best part of all were the two large cups of coffee in her hands. Reacting on impulse, he immediately bolted towards her, there were no words that could describe his emotions, no words which could articulate his feelings in that moment. Marinette saw him and looked at him confused as she ran towards him, once she realized that she was running to her she quickly yelped.

“Adrien! Wait!” She begged, causing him to lean back on his heels and fall onto his butt with the smack of his rear on pavement. “Oh my gosh! Are you ok?!” Marinette asked quickly as she bent down.

“Y-yeah” Adrien replied sheepishly as he held himself up with his hands.

“Why were you charging me like that?” Marinette asked, confused and worried.

“Marinette?” Adrien asked, with a slightly hopeful look on his face.

“What is it Adrien?” Marinette asked with concern as she knelt next to him. 

“I’m about to say something crazy, and if it means nothing to you I just want you to forget about it and move on… ok?” Adrien pleaded.

“...a-alright” Marinette replied, concerned with what he was saying at this moment. Adrien breathed in and out for a few moments, his heartbeat made it feel like he was going to die in any moment, like his heart would explode if it went any faster. ‘I wonder if she can hear my heartbeat?’ he asked himself as he stared deeply into her blue eyes, eyes that had taken his heart for her own, the eyes that he dreamt of, the eyes that belonged to his two favorite people.

“I-I think you’re  _ purr- _ fect” Adrien muttered.

Marinette woke up once again, this time in her bed with a foggy memory of Cat Noir carrying her back into her room. She sat up and checked her phone, it was 8:15 already and she knew she wanted to be at least five minutes early. She bolted up, followed closely by Tikki.

“Marinette, you still have time, there’s no need to rush” Tikki said reassuringly. 

“I know, but I want to be there early!” Marinette responded “I want to make sure I dont miss him!” she added as she threw on her prepared clothing that laid on her desk. She looked in the mirror and smiled at herself, a new, but amazing, dream could come true today. She sighed as she tried to steady her heart rate, it seemed to do nothing as her heart rate only increased.

“Are you going to transform to get there?” Tikki asked with a small smile.

“I feel like that’s fitting” Marinette replied, taking deep breaths in and out. “Tikki, spots on!” she called out excitedly as she was transformed into her superhero self. She started flying through the streets of Paris like a particular  _ fake  _ teen superhero residing in New York, she made sure to read some of those comic books, especially after she realized that some aspects of the story about a  _ spider-teen  _ were eerily similar to her own life events. She giggled to herself as she felt the wind send a small tickle down her spine, she loved the rush of flying through the air, her worries always felt so far away when she was somewhere where they couldn’t reach her. She ducked into an alley and transformed back into her civilian self, she was wearing a canvas trench coat that was a natural beige color, along with that she was wearing a pair of “tight” fitting jeans and a plain black shirt and a red scarf lining her neck to battle the cold of the morning. The biggest difference seemed to be the two buns atop her head that replaced her normal two tails, a change she decided to make last minute. She briskly walked into a small cafe as she remembered her promise and got their coffees. Walking out into the cold air with the comforting smell of a highly caffeinated beverage in her hands, she walked under the amazingly massive tower and smiled at it for a few seconds before looking back at eye level where Adrien was charging at her.

“I-I think you’re  _ purr- _ fect” Adrien muttered. Marinette felt her jaw drop in surprise, she had hoped that maybe Adrien was her kind, caring and stupid partner, but she had never expected him to find her and then tell her than he found her with a bad pun. “I-I’m sorry, I think you don't understand that'' he said sadly.

“You silly tomcat” Marinette replied with a giggle as she felt her heart rate increase to unthinkable levels. Adrien looked at her in shock, not sure what to feel or think, all he knew was that he was  _ happy.  _

“Y-y-you’re?” He asked, unable to form complete sentences “m-m-m-m’lady?” he asked, unsure of what to say or ask.

“Kitten?” Marinette asked shakily “You’re… you’re my kitten?” she asked. Her breathing was extraordinarily shaky, as if she was trying to breath while shivering at the same time, which very well could be the case as the cold air nipped at the tips of their appendages.

“I like your hair” Adrien said with a smirk, finally gaining back confidence as he realized that he had in fact fallen for the same girl twice. He gently lifted a hand and brushed the back of his hand against one of the two loose and messy buns topping her head, he felt a flutter in his heart as the smooth texture of the hair against the rear of his hand. 

“Wow, already flirting?” Marinette giggled, a blush forming on her face as she spoke. She was having a hard time processing all of this and found it strange that she was actually able to even speak, let alone tease him.

“Well, thought it would be better to get off on the right foot” Adrien explained as he finally stood up with Marinette, she handed him a cup of coffee, one which he accepted gratefully.

“I think we have a lot to talk about” Marinette explained sheepishly.

“Yeah, we probably do” Adrien responded with a scratch to the back of his neck.

“So… you’re really my kitten?” Marinette asked as they both sipped on their coffees.

“Your kitten?” He asked “I didn’t know you were so possessive” he said, stifling a laugh. He smiled as he saw the flustered look on her face, one that made him want to hug her and kiss her all over. “But yes, I am  _ your  _ kitten” he added with a smile as he purposefully brushed his knuckles against hers. 

“What… What do we do now?” Marinette asked as she turned and looked at Adrien, slightly worried by anything that could possibly come out of Adriens mouth. She felt his fingers gently take her hand in his and a small smile appeared on his face.

“Let’s just take this one day at a time” he suggested as he gently squeezed her hand in between his thumb and forefinger.

“So… so what is today?” Marinette asked kindly.

“Today… today can just be our first… today can be a morning between friends” He said, changing what he was going to say right in the middle of it.

“Between friends?” Marinette asked, slightly confused.

“Well, friends who are maybe interested in becoming something more?” He asked as he gently circled his thumb around her hand. Marinette didn’t have to think for long, she knew her exact answer to the question.

“Two friends who are definitely interested in becoming something more” She suggested as she took a step closer to Adrien with a small smile.

“I think I can agree with that” Adrien replied, knowing he was definitely going to try and squeeze out a few cuddles before they were fully dating. “So, maybe I can hang out with you today?” he asked hopefully. 

“Well, I didn’t have much else planned today” Marinette replied sheepishly “So it would probably just be a lot of sitting around watching me design”

“Actually, sitting around doing nothing sounds absolutely perfect” Adrien responded with a smile. In all honesty he just wanted to spend the day around Marinette, he didn’t care if that meant watching her design all day.

“You don't need to spend the day with me if you don't want to” Marinette replied as she looked away and reclaimed her own hand, much to Adriens dismay. He sighed slightly as he gently reached his hand out again, gently nudging her hand with his own as he tried to bring it back into his own.

“I want to spend the day with you” he reassured “I don't care if we do nothing all day, I’d rather be with you” he added happily, feeling her hand finally fall back into his gracefully. “Who knows, maybe I can even bait you into drawing me again” he teased, making Marinette blush heavily.

“Come on kitten” Marinette replied as she gently tugged his hand back towards the direction of her house. While he did release her hand while they walked, they regularly brushed up against each other, sometimes on purpose and sometimes by accident.

“So… you’re not… you're not disappointed it’s me right?” Adrien asked fearfully. That thought hadn’t necessarily came into his mind much, he was so scared that Ladybug wouldn’t be Marinette that he didn’t even worry if she was going to be disappointed in him, and judging by the awkward silence they were buried in, she was definitely deep in thought.

“What?” Marinette asked as she stopped her progress “of course not” she replied softly. 

“So… what are you thinking about then?” Adrien asked, hoping to regain some semblance of hope again. Marinette gave him a confused expression before softening into a little smile, a smile which warmed his heart.

“I was just thinking about how I had been crushing on you for such a long time, and yet you were literally my crime fighting partner” She said with a small chuckle “Did you really know I was Ladybug?” she asked in an extremely hushed whisper. Adrien thought for a few moments, knowing he wanted to give the best possible answer.

“Yeah, I guess I did” he replied. Marinette let out a sigh as she tried to figure out exactly how he could figure out, Adrien intercepted her thought process as he answered her unasked question “You said the same phrase to me both as Ladybug and Marinette” he replied “and after that, something in my brain clicked, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t separate my image of you and Ladybug from each other” Marinette was once again thrusted into deep thought, such a small slip up, phrasing, had revealed her identity to her partner. “Can I tell you something?” Adrien asked nervously.

“Of course Adrien” Marinette replied, not sure whether to refer to him as one of her cat nicknames or his real name.

“When I saw you at the Eiffel tower, I was so relieved” he explained “I was so scared that it could have been someone else… in fact I think if it was someone else I wouldn’t have been able to love them” he said with a sigh. Marinette felt her eyes start to sting, she wanted to hug and kiss him all over, but for now she would just settle for a hug, a hug that went right under his arms and squeezed his mid region tightly. The hug obviously surprised Adrien, but he didn’t let the opportunity slip out of his grasp as he wrapped his arms around her. 

“T-thank you for that” Marinette replied blissfully. 

“Anything for you bugaboo” Adrien replied as he held onto her tightly, he refused to release his grasp on her petite frame.

“What are you working on?” Adrien asked as he finally interrupted her thought process and gently put his hands on her shoulders. Marinette lifted her sketchbook to show him a design, a dress that seemed to be cut off right at the knees with a convenient cut in the side of the dress to show part of the thigh. “That looks really good Mari” Adrien said happily.

“Mari?” Marinette asked, confused by her new nickname.

“Yeah, I kinda like it” Adrien replied awkwardly, hoping he didn’t make her uncomfortable.

“I like it too” Marinette responded with a smile as she leaned back slightly, her buns hitting Adriens chest. She felt his hands gently touch her head, a hum of satisfaction came from her throat as she felt his gentle fingers run over her hair. Suddenly she felt her two hair ties come undone as her hair fell down to her shoulders, she didn’t have time to protest as she felt his hands run through her hair, gently pulling out any knots that could have been caused from her hair being tied up. She closed her eyes and hummed slightly, unsure of why she was enjoying his touch so much. “That feels really nice” she said sweetly.

“Your hair looks really nice like this” He stated, holding a large amount of her hair in his hands. 

“You think so?” Marinette asked, continuing to keep her eyes closed, scared that if she opened them this “dream” would end. 

“Yeah, I do” He replied, eventually releasing her hair. He squatted down next to Marinette and placed his chin on her shoulder. His arms wrapped around her stomach, taking her by surprise, when she flinched a little he started to move his arms away, but was quickly stopped by Marinette who held his wrists before gently moving them back over herself.

“Sorry, you surprised me” she replied as she appreciated his arms around her, they sat for a moment as Adrien gently squeezed his “friend”. Suddenly Adrien’s phone began ringing, causing Adrien to sigh loudly, he regretfully removed his hands from her and stood up as he answered his phone. 

“Hello father” he said, less than happy to be bothered at this moment “really?” he asked before waiting a few moments “Ok, I will be over shortly” he replied, wincing slightly “I-I was... just walking around the city, I didn’t expect to be out long so I didn’t ask for a ride” he said into the phone, obviously lying about his whereabouts. He lowered the phone as Marinette assumed his dad hung up, he gave her an apologetic look as he went to explain. 

“It’s fine Adrien” Marinette said with a small smile.

“I'm really sorry, I was enjoying this… us” he said with a boyish smile. Marinette wanted to melt out of happiness right then, she had expected him to give a stark apology and leave, not what he had just said.

“Me too” She replied with a smile. He approached her and hugged her again, right now they would remain friends, but soon enough they would be so much more. Marinette gave him a quick, but tight squeeze before loosening her grip.“Text me?” She asked pleadingly.

“The moment I have any free time” he replied before thinking. “I need your number” he replied happily.

“Felix?” Adrien asked as he approached his cousin “I didn’t know you were coming to visit” he added as he gave his cousin a smile. 

“I know and I’m sorry for that, but I wanted to surprise you” Felix replied happily.

“Felix, as always it is a pleasure to see you” Gabriel said starkly. 

“Thank you uncle” Felix responded. “My mother was sorry that she was unable to attend, but she sends her regards” he explained. Gabriel nodded a little in response before turning towards Adrien.

“Why don't you show Felix to your room?” he asked before turning around and walking back into the mansion. Adrien gestured for Felix to follow him as he walked into the mansion, his father had seemingly disappeared into the depths of the labyrinth that was the Agreste mansion while Felix seemed content to be around his cousin. He appreciated the interior design of the mansion, something that Adrien disagreed with greatly, the mansion always felt cold and hostile rather than warm and sweet. The pair walked into Adrien’s room as Felix gave him a kind and polite smile.

“I’m just going to use the restroom” Felix said as he walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. Adrien took this time to pull out his phone and look at his new contact, he happily sent a text away.

**Adrien- Hey Mari, sorry I had to run off, my cousin came by for a surprise visit.**

He smiled at the thought of Marinette, a girl who he wanted to be cuddled up with a blanket draped over them on a cold winter's night. He felt a shiver of joy fly down his spine as he thought of that made up moment when his phone chriped.

**Marinette- It’s alright kitten, have fun with your cousin :)**

Adrien knew that she was likely in the middle of designing some sort of clothing, but he couldn’t help it and needed to send her another text.

**Adrien- How late are you usually up?**

Adrien didn’t need to wait long before his phone chirped again, making him shiver with nervousness as he prepared to ask a question.

**Marinette- Late, usually early hours of the morning. Why?**

Adrien took a few deep breaths in before he set out to type on his phone, the chatter of the digital keys on his phone crept into his ears as he felt himself happily, and nervously, ask a question.

**Adrien- Would you mind if a certain kitten of yours visited late tonight after his cousin falls asleep?**

He took a deep breath in and out, trying to steady his emotions, but no matter what, all he could think about was hugging Marinette tightly as she gently fell asleep against him. 

**Marinette- Hmmm. Wouldn’t your cousin get sad being all alone?**

Adrien simply smirked a little.

**Adrien- I would be sadder if I can't be with my bug :(**

**Marinette- Well, what if your cousin wakes up?**

Adrien sighed, this was definitely not going the way he had planned, and he had no clue if he was going to get any sleep without at least being able to say goodnight to Marinette.

**Adrien- I can probably figure something out with my cousin.**

**Marinette- Absence makes the heart grow fonder**

**Adrien- Being with you makes my heart grow fonder**

**Marinette- I will see you tomorrow.**

**Adrien- Pleeeeeeease**

**Marinette- Kitten, I saw you a few hours ago**

**Adrien- Pretty please, I will be** **_paw-_ ** **sitively ecstatic**

**Marinette- I will be** **_paw-_ ** **sitively outraged if I find a stray cat in my bed tomorrow morning**

**Adrien- Alright, I guess I’ll just see you tomorrow**

**Marinette- Goodnight luv, I’ll see you tomorrow**

**Adrien- Goodnight bug**

With that he let out a sigh, he craved nothing more than to be around his bug, and yet it seemed like only being away from her for the short amount of time that he had was suffocating him to death. 

“So, what do you do for fun around here?” Felix asked.

“I can't believe you Marinette, why would you push Lila down the stairs?!” Alya yelped, anger fuming in her voice.

“Yeah Marinette, why would you do that?!” A few other students asked.

“I didn't! I swear!” Marinette pleaded, tears flowing from her eyes.

“Of course you did! If you didn’t then why is she on the floor?!” Alya asked as Lila fake cried at the bottom of the stairs.

“I didn’t push her down the stairs! Please! You know I could never do that!” Marinette begged, for someone, anyone to stand up for her. Suddenly she felt herself being picked up and saw Ivan looking at her menacingly.

“If you pushed Lila down the stairs then we should push you down the stairs” He hissed before tossing Marinette down the stairs, she landed on the hard ground, causing a sickening crunch to emit from her body. 

“No!” Marinette yelled as she jumped up from her bed and felt herself sweat slightly, she breathed heavily before a knock from the hatch above her made her jump. 

“Marinette? Are you ok?” Adrien's voice called out from the other side of the door. She opened the door with a sigh and allowed Adrien to slip in with a sheepish smile on his face. 

“I thought I said I didn’t want any stray cats in my bed” Marinette reprimanded as she laid back. 

“I know” Adrien replied “but I needed to see you” he explained. He looked over to Marinette and noticed her wiping at her eyes, a futile attempt to try and cover up tears that had seemed to appear from nowhere. “Hey, what’s wrong?” He asked as he gently approached her, putting a hand on her thigh. Marinette quickly latched her whole body around Adrien who was extremely confused, he didn’t fight her though as he quickly wrapped his arms around her. “What’s wrong?” he asked, gently combing a finger through her hair.

“I… I just had a bad dream” Marinette whimpered, obviously shaken up by her dream. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Adrien asked as he held her tightly.

“I… I just don't know why they believed her” she cried, hurt by something that Adrien didn’t know about yet.

“Who?” He asked, confused by Marinette's actions.

“Why did they all believe Lila?” Marinette asked as she shivered in his arms. He truthfully didn’t have an answer, he didn’t know why a whole class who had loved Marinette had so easily turned on her. 

“I...I dont know” Adrien replied

“I don't understand why they would believe her” She cried, her tears leaving small marks on Adrien's shirt. 

“Neither do I Mari, but don't worry” He said as he laid down with her on top of him “it’ll all be alright, everyone will realize soon enough” he said, gently rubbing his hand up and down her back. She finally peeked her tear stricken face from his chest and gave him a small and pained smile.

“I’m glad you’re here” She whimpered, not exactly sure why this was the way her night had gone.

“Me too princess” he replied, gently changing his repetitive up and down motion for drawing small circles on her back with his index fingers. “Get some rest” he requested.

“You shouldn’t stay long” Marinette replied as she laid her head against his chest “Your cousin might find out you snuck out” she added, not making any move to leave.

“Don’t worry about me, just get some rest” he responded, he felt her breathing start to slow, she was obviously exhausted and that was expected, after all it did somehow seem to already be one in the morning. 

“Don't get in trouble because of me” She begged, exhaustion coming from her system.

“Don't worry, I won't” He cooed, finally he felt her body completely relax, however he was nowhere near that point yet, he had a lot of thinking to do.

“Hey Alya” Adrien said as he walked up to her in the cafe. 

“Hey Adrien” Alya said suspiciously “Why did you want to meet me anyway?” she asked, not sure why she was in a cafe this early in the morning.

“Well, I have a few questions for you” He replied as he took a seat at a table, Alya hesitantly sat across from him.

“Well go ahead” Alya encouraged. Adrien sighed as he closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose, before long he looked up with a stark expression.

“Why did you believe Lila?” He asked.


	5. The Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien introduces Felix to Marinette, but Felix seems to discover feelings that are reserved for Adrien. Adrien figures out Lilas secret to her power of deception and figures out a new power of his own.

**Quick explanation- I know I said this will be mostly fluffy, but I guess I lied a little. There will also be some angst and likely a decent bit of action involved after this chapter. It’ll be easier to understand after you read this chapter, a lot happens. The timing of this chapter is all out of whack, mostly due to exhaustion, so please forgive me for that and I promise I’ll work on it in the other chapters.**

Marinette yawned as she woke up, she groggily reached around the bed and found that Adrien was missing. A slight frown came onto her face as she found her bed both empty and cold, meaning Adrien had at least left an hour or two ago. She hated to admit it, but she really wished she woke up with that alley cat. As she focused on the ceiling she noticed one of her pink sticky notes hanging from her ceiling. She took it off of her ceiling and forced her exhausted eyes to focus on the neat handwriting that lined the page, it took a few seconds before she could fully read the writing.

_ Hey, I wanted to stay, but I had a few things to do and knew you wouldn’t be happy having a stray kitten in your bed, but then again I'm no longer a stray _

  * _Your Kitten_



Marinette smiled at the note before reading it again, eventually deciding to text Adrien, or more so  _ her kitten _ . 

“Why did you believe Lila?” Adrien questioned, his eyes telling a story of their own, a story of love and care.

“I… I don't know” Alya explained “I don't understand how or why I would believe her, I mean I know Marinette would never call the Ladyblog childish” She explained “I don't know how she got me to believe her” she added.

“Huh” Adrien remarked “that’s weird” he added, he knew that Alya was telling the truth, and knew exactly what it meant, he had his suspicions as to why a whole class had turned against a girl they had loved and this seemed to confirm it. His phone chirped before he could think too much about what he had just been told.

“Do you… do you believe me?” Alya asked, slightly worried. 

“Of course” Adrien replied quickly “I know how some of these people can be” he explained “most of the time they’re harmless, but they can be extremely convincing” he finished, finally checking his phone.

**Marinette- Good Morning my kitty**

**Adrien- Morning Princess, how’d you sleep**

He smiled as he realized how much his life had changed in just over a day. It seemed incredible that he had the girl of his dreams and now he was able to get a goodmorning text from her. 

**Marinette- Pretty good, you make a good pillow**

“Do you know if… Marinette will forgive me?” Alya asked, knowing that Adrien had gotten closer to her since Lila had come to school.

“She already has Alya” Adrien replied as he stood up “you’re her best friend, she understands that you made a mistake” he reassured as he started to walk away. 

“Thanks Adrien” Alya said happily.

“Don't thank me” Adrien responded, not as an insult or anything mean, but more so in a way to say that he hadn’t done anything “but Marinette is really going to need all of her friends to show that Lila is nothing but a liar” he added, walking out of the cafe happily.

**Adrien- I’m glad you think so. Does this mean you’ll rethink the rule about stray’s sneaking into your bed?**

He laughed at his text, it was slightly risky, but he didn’t care much. He knew that the worst that happened was that she would make a sarcastic comment that politely turned him down. It felt like he didn’t have much time to think about it before he got a response.

**Marinette- Like you said, you’re not a stray anymore**

Adrien felt like he would almost drop dead right there, he was fully expecting her to say no, or something that would allow her to dodge his question. This however, this wasn’t necessarily a yes or no, and while it wasn’t an invitation for cuddles, it wasn’t a rejection.

**Adrien- so if a certain kitten slips into your bed tonight, will you make it sleep on the floor?**

**Marinette- hmm… My magic eight ball says the future is uncertain**

Adrien chuckled, who knows, maybe he would see how his luck fared that night for some cuddling with his… ‘what are me and Marinette?’ he found himself asking. He knew they weren’t dating, but he also knew that they definitely weren’t just friends either.

**Adrien- Guess I’ll have to see what the future holds. Do you mind if I swing by the bakery with my cousin, I want to introduce you.**

While he didn’t know what he and Marinette were, he did know that he wanted her to meet his cousin who was more like a brother to him, even if he had to introduce her as a friend rather than  _ his  _ girlfriend.

**Marinette- Sure, text me when you get here.**

Felix followed Adrien into the bakery with a smile as he inhaled all of the sweet aromas of pastries that had been freshly baked. Suddenly a loud crash could be heard and Adrien rushed over, knowing that Marinette had definitely just slipped up. He walked into the backroom of the bakery, worried about his “friend”, he immediately coughed heavily, flour seemed to rain downwards from every direction, dusting every item in the room, including him and Felix.

“Hey Adrien” Marinette said sheepishly as she tried to shake the flour out of her hair with her hands. 

“Hey Marinette” he replied happily “Felix, this is my…  _ friend,  _ Marinette” he said, while gesturing to the girl covered in flower “Marinette this is my cousin, Felix” He explained before quickly helping Marinette up.

“Hey Felix” Marinette said as she gained her footing and stood on her own, flour falling from her body as she did so. Her kind smile made him smile, the pale girl even paler due to the white powder,

“Hey Marinette” He replied, feeling his heart beat a few extra times. 

“Sorry, I’m... really clumsy” She said as she excused her appearance and the fact that their clothes now had a thin layer of flour covering them. Marinette finally took a good look at the pair and stood in shock for a few moments, they looked eerily similar, and if it weren't for Felix’s more formal attire, slicked hair and the small difference of his voice she wouldn’t have been able to tell them apart.

“Oh, it’s quite alright” Felix replied as he gently dusted himself off.

“If you guys want to just wait in the main room, I just need to clean this really quick” she explained. Felix and Adrien gave her a smile before walking out of the room and back into the main area of the bakery. Felix felt his heart thump slightly harder for a few moments, a feeling he wasn’t accustomed to.

“Does that happen a lot?” Felix asked his cousin “I mean, is Marinette clumsy all the time?” he asked. Adrien thought for a few moments as he ran over the numerous times he had to catch her before falling to the pavement.

“Kind of, I can't even count the amount of times I've caught her as she was falling” he explained with a laugh, loving the memory of her flustered face as he held her in his arms. Felix smiled too, he didn’t realize that his heart seemed to beat a few paces faster than usual. It took a few minutes before they finally saw Marinette again, no longer covered in flour.

“Hey, sorry about that” Marinette said as she finally stepped into view, her clothes different than before. “Hi Felix, Adrien has told me absolutely nothing about you” She said as she extended a friendly hand, one which Felix eagerly took.

“I told you I had a cousin” Adrien retorted playfully.

“Yes, and yet you didn’t tell me he was essentially your identical twin” She teased as her and Felix’s hands separated.

“Yeah, that’s always been a bit… odd for us too” Felix replied as he looked at his cousin knowingly.

“So, what are you two up to for the rest of the day?” Marinette asked as she smiled at the pair. 

“Well, I was going to go around and show Felix some of the sights of Paris” Adrien explained “Do you feel like tagging along?” he asked, more so out of wanting to spend time with her rather than obligation.

“Yeah, sure” Marinette replied “What do you want to see first?” 

“So you’ve seen everything in Paris and yet you asked me to show you around?” She asked the pair, directing her question more at Felix.

“Hey, I enjoyed it either way” Felix responded with a small smile. 

“I’m going to call Alya and Nino and see if they want to catch a movie” Marinette said with a flustered attitude “or have you seen all the movies?” she said with a roll of her eyes. Adrien couldn’t help but smile as he saw her slightly aggravated appearance, he wanted to hug her tightly and kiss her to see the blush on her face. He desperately wanted that, to just hold her tightly while she slept in his arms. Sadly he had to settle for something else, as she was on the phone with Nino he leaned right next to her ear.

“You look cute when you’re flustered” he whispered, he could practically feel the heat rise from her face as he let out a small laugh. 

“Jerk” Marinette muttered as she herself found the humor in it. She smiled to herself before taking a deep breath and turning to the pair again “They’ll meet us at the movie theatre” she said with a smile. 

“So, what’re we watching?” Felix asked kindly.

“So Adrien has a twin?” Nino asked as he examined the well dressed teen.

“That confused me too” Marinette responded as she held a hand against her chin in deep thinking.

“This is some freaky stuff” Alya added, looking at the pair “You sure you guys aren’t like twins who were separated at birth?” she asked.

“We’re just two cousins who look basically identical” Felix replied, obviously knowing how weird it was.

“Yeah guys, it’s just a freak coincidence” Adrien replied with a shrug “We’ve both decided that it’s better to just not think about it” he added. They all nodded in agreement before finally walking into the theatre where the trailers were already playing, after everyone sat down the lights dimmed, as if on cue the movie started. Marinette immediately regretted all of her life choices as she realized that the movie Alya had chosen was a horror movie, the movie genre that Marinette hated the most. It didn’t seem to take long before she was already jumping in her seat from a jumpscare that she had been fully expecting, she felt her heart beating throughout her body, a beat that was suddenly stopped dead as she felt a hand intertwine with her own. She looked to the side and found Adrien with a small smile on her face, she even had to do a double take to make sure it was Adrien that was holding her hand. She was certain right when he started to make small circles on the space between her thumb and forefinger, immediately she returned his tight grasp. The movie suddenly didn’t feel as scary as it once had been now that Adriens calming touch was there to comfort her, deciding that no one could see her right then, she leaned her head against Adriens shoulder. She didn’t seem to notice the stare of jealousy from Felix who sat next to Alya and Nino, in fact the world itself didn’t seem to move as she relaxed her head against him. That was until another jumpscare came, this time Marinette jumped again, but was quickly calmed as Adrien held her hand close to him. This is it, she wanted this all the time, the hand holding, the cuddling, everything, she wanted all of it. Gently she leaned as close as she could to him, her side digging into her armrest as she rested her head against his chest, Adrien's hand slipped from her grasp only to put it on her waist. He carefully took his fingers and ran them up and down her side, he knew she enjoyed it when she pushed into his chest some more even though someone was getting brutally murdered on screen, something he would tease her about later. The movie faded out in front of them as they instead focused on each other, the smooth fabric of their clothing, the smell of their respective cologne/perfume, everything about them seemed to blend into a perfectly balanced symphony of the two, vanilla and cinnamon, cotton and polyester, everything seemed to be perfect, no everything  _ is  _ perfect. It seemed neither of them even noticed as the credits began to roll an hour later, Adrien only noticed when he realized that people were now walking out of the theatre, in fact Nino, Alya and Felix were already getting up. Marinette sighed as she removed her head from his side and gave him a small smile, a smile that made his heart jump from his chest. 

“What’d you guys think?” Alya asked.

“A little too scary for me” Marinette explained as she stretched while standing up “What’d you think Felix?” she asked with a kind expression. 

“I think it was a little too cheesy for my liking” He explained happily.

“I completely agree” Adrien replied “A remake of every horror movie ever” Nino rolled his eyes before responding.

“I have no faith left in humanity, that was literally the best movie I have ever seen” Nino said with a sigh.

“You also said that Sharknado was going to win an Oscar” Alya teased.

It was dark, frighteningly so, as if an inky black had enveloped the city he held so dear, a power outage had caused the entirety of Paris to turn into a dark and seemingly desolate place. However Cat Noir had always liked the dark, a place where nothing could reach you, a place where you could hide and know you couldn’t be found. Today however, darkness was his enemy and his best friend, for someone had been trying to harm _his_ lady, his princess, and he was going to do everything in his power to figure out how she had done it. He decided to walk today, in fact it was so dark that even cars had returned to their resting places, leaving him shrouded in darkness, making him invisible. He stalked the streets like a lion on the hunt, and he already knew what his prey was, and he knew exactly where _she_ was. In fact he had been following her for multiple blocks, she hadn’t noticed him yet and he preferred it that way due to the fact that he knew any advantage he had on Lila was worth it. Just then she turned, the lights blinked back on, thrusting the city into life, if darkness was his friend then the light was his mistress as he looked up, his green eyes burning a hole into Lilas skin.

“W-what do you want?” Lila asked with slight fear breaking into her voice. Cat didn’t respond, instead he just stared at her, waiting for her to make her move, because he already knew one of her secrets. “Answer me!” She yelped, likely scared of the black cat. She received no response as Cat knew he needed to remain silent for a few more moments, in fact he knew couldn’t respond, he needed to be patient. He took a few menacing steps towards her, waiting for her to expose herself, to show her real self. Soon enough she did, she turned and mader her arms into an “x” before thrusting them outwards, sending a charge on energy right towards Cat, he had been right, she was _ akumatized _ . As it goes with Cat’s, he was quick and stealthy on his feet, using his baton to disappear into some of the remaining darkness that was held in an alley. Once he heard her footsteps running off he knew he needed to do something, to see  _ someone _ , he needed to see his master _.  _

“Master Fu” Adrien said exhaustedly as he stormed into the massage parlor, the old man was already awaiting him.

“Adrien, we have much to talk about” the old man said as he calmly sat down. 

“I need to tell you something Master” he said, trying to calm his nerves, trying to settle his racing heart.

“I already know Adrien, and that is what we must first talk about” he explained as he gestured in front of him, likely wanting Adrien to take a seat. “You must remember that as the guardian I can feel the shift that has happened, the balance has been thrown off” he explained.

“What do you mean Master?” the blonde boy asked, intrigued by his ability to be so cryptic at a time like this.

“A girl who has been akumatized, one that now holds uncertain power” he explained “this girl is a danger to the one you love, so we must defeat her before she exposes Marinette”

“W-what do you mean?” Adrien asked, uncertain of what he was being told.

“I mean that Lila Rossi knows the identity of Ladybug, she knows the two sides of the girl you love” Fu explained.

“How can you even tell?” he asked skeptically.

“Adrien, the shift in balance tells me all I need to know, the fight is no longer even” Fu said as he stood up and walked to the gramophone behind him “as the black cat you are in charge of the darkness, you control pain and suffering…  _ destruction.  _ Ladybug controls love and creation, that is why you love her so dearly, she is the opposite of you, but she is also the same.” he added “you’re a figure made of darkness and sadly you must take fully accept that darkness now” he opened the gramophone to reveal the miraculous box “Ladybug is powerful with her powers, and I am sorry that it may seem that you are underpowered compared to her, but the truth is… you’re not, you are just as strong as Ladybug when you obtain your other two miraculouses” he took the miraculous box out and examined it “as the black cat you have the power of destruction, but as The Night, you have the power of darkness” he said as he knelt in front of Adrien to even their eye level. “Adrien Agreste, Cat Noir, you are now entitled to the miraculous of the bat to grant you wisdom and ambition, along with this I give to you the miraculous of the panther to give you the power of valor and courage, but most importantly the power of protection” Fu finished as he held out two small black boxes with an odd but ancient symbol carefully carved and painted on them. “With these you are no longer Cat Noir, you are now The Night, fierce and unforgiving, but kind and loving to those who you hold dear” Adrien took the boxes out of his hand and eyed them suspiciously.

“W-what if the darkness takes me?” Adrien asked worriedly “what if I become so obsessed with darkness that I can't find the light?” he added, obviously scared. Fu took on a kind and caring look, one of a father talking to his crying child.

“Adrien, you are tethered to the light” Fu explained “that’s why I’m giving these to you now, because your heart belongs to the light, much like Marinette’s heart belongs to you, the darkness” he added with a kind smile. “Like yin and yang yourself, you are the darkness in Marinette and she is the light in you, a perfect pair that belongs together” Adrien felt his heart melt a little, as if the light was burning inside him right then.

“Thank you Master” he replied as he bowed slightly. 

“No Adrien, thank you” Fu replied “there is one thing I must ask of you however”

“What is it?” Adrien asked, curious.

“Bring Marinette here, I must teach her how to unlock her full potential to balance the power between you two” he explained “as of now you are more powerful than her, so bring her in as soon as you possibly can” he asked. 

“I’ll do my best” Adrien promised as he stood up.

“Very well” Fu said as he too stood up and placed the miraculous box into the gramophone “I look forward to our next meeting”

“Me too” Adrien responded happily as he walked out of the massage parlor with the two new jewelry boxes. 


	6. The Night Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien unlocks his new powers and becomes The Night, a darker and much more powerful version of Cat Noir who is more willing to bend the rules.

It didn’t take long for Adrien to duck into an alleyway to look at the new miraculouses he had just been given, he looked at both boxes, black in color with a vibrant shining red symbol glistening off of the top. 

“Will you just open it already?” Plagg chirped “I haven't seen these guys in one hundred years, I would like to see them sooner rather than later” he added with a sigh. 

“They’re your friends?” Adrien asked as he ran his fingers over the boxes.

“Yeah, of course they are” Plagg responded “We’re supposed to be a trio, all three of us combine into Ladybugs equal” he explained. When he saw that Adrien still had a look of worry planted on his face, he let out a small sigh “Don't worry kid” he said sympathetically “Every Cat Noir has made this change, and every Cat Noir has been able to handle the extra power”

“But… What if I can't handle the darkness” Adrien asked as he looked at the small black cat.

“You wont be able to if you have that attitude” Plagg responded snarkily “But you can’t try and handle the darkness, that’ll make you go insane” he explained “instead you need to embrace the darkness and trust that you won't become obsessed with it”

“Has there ever been a Cat Noir who became obsessed with power?” Adrien asked, his worries slightly dying out. 

“There was one” Plagg explained as he resurfaced a bad memory “This Cat Noir found the two miraculouses before he became intertwined with Ladybug, he became so obsessed with the darkness that the guardian at the time had to use every miraculous he had to tear him away from darkness” he added.

“W-what… what happened to him?” Adrien asked nervously.

“Well, he became his civilian self again, with no memories of himself becoming consumed by the darkness” the Kwami replied “Eventually he was able to become Cat Noir again with Ladybugs help, but he was never really…  _ himself _ again” he added. They sat in silence for a long time, longer than he would like to admit, after all he had always known a part of him was shrouded in darkness. Ever since his mother disappeared and his father became cold he had felt it, a bead of darkness that had grown. 

“What will happen to me?” Adrien asked with a more determined look on his face.

“For that, you may want to talk to Pen and Bud” Plagg explained “Pen is the puma kwami and Bud is the bat” he added. The boy looked around the cold and dark alley, the only way to make this worse would be trash and rain.

“I should probably do this somewhere more… private” he suggested.

“That’d be for the best” Plagg nodded along before tucking himself back into Adrien's shirt pocket. Adrien stood up and tucked the two boxes into his other pockets, he knew that Felix would soon be suspicious on why it was taking him so long to get back to his house. Sadly his new transformation might take longer than he wanted, but he also knew going into this with all the emotions swirling through his body was a bad idea. He knew he needed to see his lady, he needed to see Marinette, his light. “Claws out” Adrien called as he ducked behind a dumpster, Plagg offered no protest as Adrien became Cat Noir again. He hurdled through the streets and over to the bakery he knew and loved, one that he wished he could spend every minute at. It seemed in an instant he was on Marinette’s balcony, carefully knocking on her hatch door, waiting for sleeping beauty to give him a response. The hatch opened slightly, revealing a tired blue eye peering out from the dark room.

“Kitten? What time is it?” She asked as she opened the hatch fully.

“I'm not sure” Cat responded “I really wanted to see you” he added. He may not have noticed his change of tone, but Marinette certainly did, and it scared her. She stepped aside and gestured for him to come into the room, a gesture that made Adriens heart melt a little more. He stepped into her room and let the hatch close behind him, looking around the dark room, knowing he had definitely woken her up.

“Claws in” He said calmly, allowing Plagg to come back into existence. He flew right next to his ear and whispered something into his ear.

“You cannot let her know that Lila knows her identity” He warned before flying off and cuddling next to Tikki. 

“Is something wrong?” Marinette asked tiredly, suddenly remembering she had been rudely awakened from her slumber.

“No, nothings wrong,” Adrien responded “I was just wondering if you had room in your bed for a stray kitten?” he asked pleadingly, praying that she wouldn’t say no.

“There’s no room for stray kittens” Marinette replied with a small and playful roll of her eyes. Adrien immediately felt his hopeful face fall down. “But, then again, you’re no longer a stray” she added.

“So, does that mean?” Adrien suggested.

“Yes kitty, there’s room for you” she replied with a small giggle. Adrien smiled as he laid down and waited for Marinette to join him. She crawled up beside him and laid her head on his chest, feeling his arm wrap around her. “Won't your cousin know that you snuck out?” she asked quietly as she nuzzled into his chest.

“Maybe, but I don't care” Adrien replied as he laid on his side to hug Marinette, only to then pull her on top of him. She yelped in surprise, but quickly smiled at Adrien as she settled on top of him, feeling his warmth against her. The only reason she moved was to grab her comforter and pull it over them, surrounding them with the thick cloth. “Goodnight my princess” he said, trailing her back with gentle hands.

“Goodnight my kitten” she replied. That was exactly when Adrien knew he would do anything to protect Marinette, she was his light and he would protect her at all costs. While he still did have his doubts on if Lila actually knew Marinette’s true identity, he wouldn’t take any chances, as soon as he could he would take care of Lila, destroy the akuma giving her powers. Suddenly his phone vibrated, he carefully took his phone out, not wanting to wake the newly sleeping girl on his chest, he saw it was a text from his cousin.

**Felix- Where are you?**

Adrien smiled at the mop of black hair on his chest, he carefully took a few strands in his fingers, balancing them in his fingers as he felt the soft black hair. He no longer wanted to hide his feelings for the beautiful girl he was with, he wanted to let everyone know, the whole world if he could.

**Adrien- I’m with Marinette, I won't be back until morning**

Felix read the text from his cousin and he was immediately fuming, it was approaching the late hours of the night and his cousin was likely with Marinette, a girl he had feelings for against his best wishes. Suddenly a sickly idea popped into his head, an idea that would likely end their relationship, one which would free Marinette for his own courting attempts. He grinned to himself as he walked out of Adrien's room and marched down to his uncle's study, he gave a slight knock on the door of the study and waited for a response.

“Come in” Gabriels voice called from the other side of the door. Felix stepped into the study politely and gave his uncle a small smile. “Good evening Felix, what can I do for you” Gabriel asked.

“Uncle, I have something I must tell you” he replied regretfully.

“Well do tell” Gabriel encouraged.

“I believe Adrien is spending the night at a girls house” he replied as he tore his view away from his uncle for dramatic effect.

“I see” Gabriel responded as he stood up. “He is not in his room then?” Gabriel asked while walking towards his nephew. 

“I can assure you he is not” Felix replied.

“Very well, I must see for myself however” the older man responded before giving the boy a small push. He followed Felix out of his study as he proceeded through the house, it didn’t take long for the pair to reach Adrien's room, one that was arguably empty. As Felix had described, his son was missing, and he had no doubt that he knew who he was with. 

“Thank you for informing me Felix” Gabriel said with anger crawling in his voice “Do you know the girl who he is with at the moment?” Felix had no inner turmoil as his plan was fully set into motion.

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng” Felix replied.

Adrien traced small circles on Marinette's back, he could feel that she was awake, he knew that she had been for a while, likely savoring the feeling of closeness that he too was feeling. He dared not stop his careful motions with his hands for fear that she would move if he did so.

“Marinette?” Adrien asked.

“Hmm?” Marinette hummed in satisfaction.

“Can I tell you something?” he pleaded nervously, continuing his careful pattern on her back.

“Of course kitty” She replied, not bringing her eyes to his yet.

“I… I like you so much bug” he admitted, but from his tone Marinette knew he wasn’t finished “So much that I don't know how to control my feelings, my urges to give you all these feelings” he added as he felt the prick of tears “I couldn’t imagine one day without you, and I hope that you feel the same about me” he explained “So I was wondering, if you… if you would maybe be my lovebug?” he asked . That… that heartfelt ramble caught Marinette’s attention, she looked up and caught his eyes.

“My kitten… are you asking me…  _ us _ … to be official? Together?” she asked hopefully.

“Yes my bug” he replied as he sat up, clinging to her petite body tightly “do you… do you want that?” Marinette had no need to think for long, instead she just hugged him tightly, gripping onto him as if he was her lifeline. 

“Of course” She replied while nuzzling into his neck, a warm sensation flying through her body “Will you freak out if I tell you that I’ve dreamt of this since I met you?” She asked.

“Not at all” Adrien replied, feeling tears of joy fall down his cheeks “In fact I think I like you more now than I did a few seconds ago” he replied with a small laugh. They were no longer laying down, now they were sitting up against the wall as Adrien hugged his girl tightly, he would never let anything… anyone hurt this girl. “M’lady?” he asked. 

“Yes?” Marinette replied.

“I… I need to go take care of something” He explained “It shouldn’t take long” he added.

“What do you need to do?” She asked, slightly scared from his cryptic attitude.

“Dont worry” he quickly stated “It’s nothing bad, I just need to do something before it gets too late tonight” he added. He felt Marinette's grip around him loosen, a sensation that he knew he absolutely hated. “Will you be back tonight?” She asked, knowing that if he didn’t want to tell him now he would tell her eventually… at least she hoped so.

“Of course” he replied “I may have to wake up earlier than you to get ready for school” he started “but I’ll make sure that I say goodbye this time” he said with a smirk, one that Marinette matched. 

“I’ll see you soon then” She replied with a smile, one that harbored more feelings than just love. 

“I promise I’ll be back” he replied “Claws out” he said, causing Plagg to be thrusted out of sleep. He climbed out of the warm room and into the night, the darkness that would become his home now, but a part of him knew that it would never be his home, because he had just found out his home was actually a person. He ran and jumped from her balcony, each building's roof was starting to become slick as any moisture froze onto the surface. He ran until he found himself at the Eiffel Tower, which he climbed at excessive speeds. “Claws in” he cooed, causing Plagg to be thrusted out of the ring.

“Really kid?!” Plagg yelped.

“I need to take care of Lila now” Was the response Plagg received, his face softened and he nodded carefully.

“Time to protect your lady?” he asked kindly. When Adrien replied with a nod Plagg gave him a smile, one that could warm anyone's icy heart. “Open the first miraculous box” he requested. Adrien finally remembered the two boxes that he had tucked away in various pockets, he took one out and looked to Plagg for confirmation. He gave a nod, allowing Adrien to open the box, a blast of light spread all around, he couldn’t quite identify the color even if he tried. 

“Hey Plagg” A small floating creature said happily.

“Hey Bud” Plagg replied. When Adrien finally took a good look at his new Kwami, Bud, he saw that it was a small anthropomorphic bat that was using its wings to levitate, much like Plagg it had a squeaky voice, but this one had piercing red eyes. “You must be Cat Noir?” he asked happily. Adrien nodded a little in response, unsure what to make of his new friend “I am Bud, the kwami of the bat” Bud explained “if you release my friend we can fully explain your new powers to you” he added in a sugestful tone. Adrien once again nodded as he looked down at the open jewelry box, a necklace laid there, one with a black bat, made obvious by the crude wings and small head with fangs. The most significant part of the necklace seemed to be the deep red jewel embedded in the heart of the bat, a color so deep and mysterious that it made Adrien shiver. He took the second box and opened it, another burst of light, this one gold in color, revealing another kwami floating right in front of him, this time a panther with angular lines of gold lining the surface of the panther. It opened its eyes and peered at Adrien who was fixated on the small golden eyes of the creature.

“I am Pen, kwami of the panther” He explained “you must be the current Cat Noir?” he asked before turning towards the other two kawmi, Adrien took a look at the item of the jewelry box, it was the most beautiful lapel pin he had ever seen. A panther head made of complete black coated gold that had pure gold angular lines running through, its eyes seemed to be the main feature, solid gold that seemed to reflect Adriens own eye ‘I guess I’ll have to start wearing casual blazers’ he joked to himself. All the kwami huddled together while exchanging looks at Adrien, who was extraordinarily confused as to what the small creatures were doing.

“You're scared” Bud suggested as he looked at the blonde boy.

“I sense it too” Pen added “And from what Plagg tells us you’re afraid of being consumed by darkness?” he asked. 

“It just scares me” Adrien replied “I don't know what to do if I can't control it” he added fearfully. Pen sighed before looking over to Bud who had a very similar look planted on his small face.

“You don't want to  _ control  _ the darkness” Pen explained “If you try and control it, try and force it to obey you, you’ll break yourself in two” he added.

“It’s true” Bud said in agreement “you need to be freely open to the idea of letting the darkness overtake you and trust that you’re well tethered to the light” he added. Adrien's mind immediately went to the girl who he had just left, the one likely waiting for him to come back. Pen got an interested look on his face, one that let him know he was thinking.

“This girl, you love her greatly” Pen said happily before his expression turned more solemn “there’s another that ties into your relationship however, a girl of deception and pain” he added “this girl threatens your relationship, she threatens your mate” he said as his eyes, this time physically shining, they slowly turned back into their normal color, as if dimming a light. “This second girl is a danger to all, starting off as a pawn to Hawkmoth, but she has evolved past that now” Pen said with a tinge of regret in his voice “we must take care of her now before she becomes to powerful for you alone”

“Shouldn’t I get Ladybug to help me with this?” Adrien asked, this was all too much information at once “I mean how will I take care of the akuma if she’s not there to cleanse it?” he asked, more so pleaded, with the three small kwamis.

“Do you trust me Adrien?” Plagg asked, a surprising question for him to ask.

“Of course” Adrien responded quickly.

“Then do the transformation” He requested “You’ll know everything you’ll need to know once you’ve fully transformed” he added kindly.

“It’s true” Bud responded “You just need to fully accept the darkness”

“How do I do that?” Adrien asked with determination, deciding that all the risks were worth it.

“Think about the light” Pen responded “The darkness will take as much as it wants, and you have to let it have that, but if you think about the light, you won't become overwhelmed” he added. Adrien took a few deep breaths in and out, trying to clear his mind from any negative thoughts.

“What do I say?” Adrien asked the three.

“You can say whatever you want” Plagg responded “There’s no actual phrase you need to say, just something that signifies you want all three of us rather than just one” he added. “Oh and you might want to wear the miraculouses” Plagg finished. Adrien nodded as he thought for a few seconds, he clasped the necklace around his neck and took the lapel pin and stuck it through a button hole in his over shirt ‘that’ll have to do for now’ he thought as he turned to the kwami’s. 

“Trio! Lights out!” He yelled, quickly he was enveloped with an inky black, he had no idea what it looked like, but soon enough his vision was regifted, but this time it was severely enhanced. He felt…  _ different  _ to say the least. It was as if someone went into his mind and stimulated every single nerve in his mind, causing his entire presence to feel otherworldly. If he had described this to people they would say he was high, because he would have described the feeling of darkness soaring through his body, not unfamiliar and definitely not unwelcome. Then he felt it stop, steady, it flowed freely throughout his body but it had stopped its spread. He took a deep and shaky breath in, once he released it he decided to look at the body parts of his which he could see. His arms were lined with his regular cat claws, but his fingers were currently webbed, the biggest difference seemed to be the golden lines that shimmered against his skin tight dark leather suit. Once he looked at his abdomen he knew they were continuous down his body, producing sharp angles across him, it also seemed that his baton was nowhere to be found. He decided not to worry about that as it seemed to be a moot point, he knew he wouldn’t need it. Approaching the edge of the large metal beams, he looked down to the streets below, multiple people gathered at the bottom of the large art sculpture.

“I wonder if we’ll see Ladybug on our trip” A small girl chripped. 

_ Wait _

‘I shouldn’t be able to hear from down here’ Adrien told himself, he shouldn’t be able to hear a small voice from hundreds of feet below. He focused on them again but had no ability to resurface his previous skill.

“I wonder if Adrien is alright” Marinette's voice whispered “I mean he seemed…  _ worried”  _ she explained “Do you think I did something wrong?” she asked. Adrien immediately felt guilty, she thought she had done something to make him nervous. 

“Don't worry m’lady” he begged, he knew that right when he finished with this he would make sure to tell her exactly how much he loved her and how much he would give up just to be with her. He looked down again and suddenly felt nauseous, he never realized how much this height could do to his mind. 

_ ‘Freefall’ _

A voice like Plags called, he didn’t expect that, nor did he expect to be falling hundreds of feet down towards the ground. That wasn’t the biggest surprise, no that was reserved for when instead of falling to his inevitable death, he instead felt his momentum stop and instead he was soaring forward. He opened his eyes and found himself gliding across the air, he looked around frantically until his eyes settled just behind his arms where he now had a pair of bat wings helping him glide through Paris. 

“Well that’s new” Adrien quipped. It didn’t take long to realize that his learning would be…  _ hands on _ . Learning on the job wasn’t Adriens strong suit, and he was sure that there were numerous things he didn’t know about his new abilities, but he was certain that he would take the time to learn each and every one, starting with how to fly. Luckily he had a few hundred meters before his next obstacle. He played around with moving his arms back and forth and got used to pitching, yawing and rolling. That still didn’t seem to solve all his problems as the building quickly approached, he decided to try something, anything, as he waved his arms in the air, only to find that they no longer acted like arms, instead they acted like flippers swimming through water. The motion was strenuous but it pushed him upwards the remaining area he needed to clear all the remaining buildings. He breathed in the cold night air as he finally felt the true power he held, he remembered what he was supposed to be doing. Quickly he glided straight to Lila’s house and circled it a few times before eyeing the window where he assumed the teen lived. He dove with his feet forward, charging straight towards the window at incredible speeds “Wings in” he called, hoping the wings would disappear, as he hoped it worked, his wings disappeared and he was left soaring towards the glass pane. His feet made contact with the glass shattering the pane and sending glass in every direction, his feet hit the ground as he did a tuck and roll. 

“Ah!” Lila yelped as she looked at the masked crusader that had broken his way into her room. 

“Lila” Adrien bellowed, or rather The Night bellowed “Where’s the akuma?” he asked.

“I-I don't know what you’re talking about!” Lila yelled, obviously lying. When the masked hero started to approach her, she became defensive, once again using the same move he had used on Cat Noir. It seemed he was easily able to evade the attack by jumping to the ceiling.

_ wait. _

‘Why is everything upside down’ he asked himself as he looked at the now upside down Lila, it didn’t take long for him to realize that he was crawling on top of the ceiling. He shrugged as he hopped down and looked at Lila.

“Cat Noir?” she asked as she seemingly recognized him.

“Wrong” he replied as he grabbed her wrist, he twisted it behind her back causing her to be pushed in front of Adrien. “Where is the akuma?!” he asked. As he waited for a response Lila thrashed in his arms, trying to break free from his grasp. 

“There is no akuma!” Lila lied.

“Huh, wrong again” He replied, applying a quick but forceful pressure to her back and a quick sideways motion with her arm, causing his arm to yank her shoulder out of its socket as if it was nothing. Screams erupted as she woke up the whole neighborhood, cries of pain erupting from her room. 

“Cat Noir isn’t supposed to maim his victims” Lila cried out, quickly putting as much space as possible between them.

“Lucky for the both of us I’m not Cat Noir” he replied as she looked over her form which held her newly dislocated shoulder. Finally he spotted a necklace lining her shirt, one which looked like a miraculous Master Fu had shown him, but it also seemed that it would be easy to turn into an akuma. He grabbed it and easily crushed it in a clenched fist, causing a purple butterfly to flutter out of the necklace. ‘What do I do now?’ he asked himself. As if acting on impulse to his own question he grabbed the akuma and held it in his hand, he closed his eyes and felt his heart warm slightly. “Let the light in” he whispered. A bright light glowed from his clenched fist before he opened his palm to reveal a cleansed akuma, but none of his damage was fixed, Lila laid on the ground in immeasurable pain, the only thing that was fixed were the minds of those brainwashed. No matter how powerful he became, he needed Ladybug because he needed his love, he needed someone who could fix his numerous mistakes. 

“You may have taken my powers, but nothing has changed!” Lila yelped “I still know her identity, I know who she is!” she cried.

“I know” Adrien replied “and I could care less” he added, giving a mischievous grin to Lila before hopping out of her window head first. 

Marinette was almost asleep when she heard her hatch door gently open again, she felt her bed slump down as Adrien closed the hatch. 

“Sorry princess” he whispered. Marinette hummed as she turned and cuddled next to him, something she was doing for the second time, yet it feels like she had done it thousands of times before. 

“I dont care” Marinette replied as she put her forehead against his chest “I’m just glad you’re here” she added while reaching her hands around him and to his back.

“I’ll always come back” he replied. Marinette thought for a few moments, wondering what to say next.

“I feel older than fifteen” she explained “I mean we’re trusted to save Paris from a terrorist everyday and we’re only teenagers, it’s insane to think that it’s our life now” she added. Adrien inhaled and let out a sigh.

“I know” he responded “but at least we have each other” Marinette looked up at him and gave him a worried smile, one that let him know that she was overthinking.

“Do you think we’re moving too fast?” she asked, worried “I mean we finally agreed to be…  _ official _ , and we’re already cuddling” she explained. Adrien didn’t take long to respond.

“I think that sneaking in and cuddling with each other is something normal teenage couples do” he explained “plus I can't imagine a day where I don't get to cuddle you” he said with a smirk. 

“Silly kitten” she said as she booped his nose with her index finger. Adrien was quiet for a few moments, not wanting to break their comfortable silence until he had to.

“I have a surprise for you” he whispered “but you need to wait until school to find out what it is” he added with a small smile.

“Mmmm” Marinette hummed as she started to lose the battle to sleep “I have a surprise for you too, birthday boy” she added, taking Adrien by surprise. He had all but forgotten his own birthday, but the amazing girl beside him had remembered.

“Goodnight  _ purr- _ incess” he whispered as Marinette fully fell asleep next to him. He would have to leave early in the morning so as to not raise suspicion with his father, but he would stay for as long as he could… he always would.


	7. Home?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'll just let y'all read it.

Adrien tried to slip away from Marinette, in fact he tried his best to do so without waking her up, but his effort was futile since it seemed like the moment he tried to slip from her grasp she woke up. 

“Mmm” She hummed in protest as her pillow tried to escape her grasp.

“I’m sorry  _ purr- _ incess, but I must go” Adrien replied, putting a gentle hand on her back. 

“Mmm” she hummed again, tightening her grip around his chest. 

“Wow, you really are a love bug” Adrien teased, and just like that.

_ Marinette’s awake. _

Her face immediately flushed as her mind finally took over, realizing that it was in fact Adrien that she was clinging onto, instead of a very warm and cuddly pillow. She immediately released her grasp and turned away embarrassed. Adrien felt a smirk crawl onto his face, at least he knew that Marinette enjoyed cuddling. “Come on Mari” Adrien whined “Can I have a goodbye hug?” he pleaded to Marinette's back.

“Hmph!” Marinette replied mockingly. Adrien smirked and lunged to her waist, putting a tight grasp around her petite frame, Marinette squeaked as she was tugged back by Adrien.

“Please Mari” Adrien begged in an exaggerated tone “ _ paw- _ lease” he added, laughing at his own pun.

“Ughh! Only if you don't use any more terrible puns” Marinette replied as she leaned backwards into Adrien, who grew a devilish smirk on his face.

“My beloved wounds me! Oh the pain! The suffering!” he yelped, his fake distressed tone turning into a small chuckle.

“You silly kitten” Marinette responded, a smile forming on her own face. Adrien couldn’t help it as he put his nose in Marinette's hair, even now he could smell the lavender of her shampoo. 

“I’ll see you at school, ok?” Adrien asked, speaking into her hair. 

“Alright” Marinette replied happily “Happy birthday” she added in a quiet voice. Adrien immediately felt a swarm of affection well up in his stomach, he wished he could stay there with Marinette the whole day, but he knew if he wasn’t back before Nathalie came in to wake him up then he’d likely be in big trouble. 

“Thank you bug” he finally said, trying to pry his arms from Marinette's waist, yet it seemed like no matter how much he tried his body wouldn’t move. 

“Can I give you your present before you leave?” she asked, wiggling in Adriens grasp until she could look at him.

“You really didn’t have to go through the trouble of getting me something” he replied, finally releasing her waist.

“Everyone deserves a present on their birthday and from what you told me, your dad always buys you pens, pens are not a birthday gift” She said as Adrien released his grasp on her. Making sure she didn’t fall off her bed, she made quick work to get the present off of her desk, knowing that Adrien had to leave in a few seconds. “It’s nothing super expensive or anything, in fact it basically cost me nothing, but-” 

“Can I open it?” Adrien asked, breaking her rambling. 

“Y-yes” Marinette replied nervously. Adrien smiled as he tore the wrapping paper, revealing a slim rectangular box, he carefully opened the box to find a layer of blue, he quickly took it out and found it was a scarf, not only a scarf, but a handmade scarf. He ran the back of his hand against it, as if anything more would ruin the beautiful material.

“Marinette” he said quietly “This is the most beautiful scarf I have ever seen” he added as he threw it around his neck, savoring the smell of Marinette's home that lingered on the well made scarf. “I love it” he added. 

“Well, you should get going” Marinette replied as she looked towards the floor “I’ll see you soon” she added as she finally met Adriens eyes.

“Yes you will” was the response she got as Adrien crawled out of her hatch and into the chilly early morning air. Marinette let out a blissful sigh as she laid back down knowing that she at least had a few more minutes before she had to get ready for school. Adrien however, needed to be home as quickly as possible, getting in trouble would likely mean that he wouldn’t be able to see Marinette, and that was the last thing he wanted. He leapt from building to building as he tried to get home, it wasn’t easy to run across rooftops with the early morning dew built up which caused him to slow down significantly. After what seemed to be a lifetime he finally reached his window, except the problem was that Felix had no idea about his identity which made his job just about ten times harder. He hopped down to the back and de-transformed, praying that no one would notice his disappearance just yet. Slipping in through the rear entrance was easy enough, it was the same story with getting to his room, but the same could not be said with entering his room. That was easy to tell, especially since when he walked into his room his father was sitting on his bed while Felix had a guilty look on his face.

“Hello Adrien, it’s nice to see that you decided to come back” his father spat.

“Hello father” Adrien said politely, trying to stay calm, especially since his father knew that he had snuck out. 

“Care to tell me where you’ve been?” Gabriel replied calmly looking around the room.

“I assume you already know” Adrien replied, channeling all the courage he had, he didn’t know if that would be enough, that was when his phone chimed. He quickly checked it, and became visibly happy as he read the message.

**Marinette- See you at school kitten, by the way, you really do make the best pillow :)**

That was all the courage Adrien needed to power himself through this conversation, he knew that he also had something to look forward too. 

“Felix informed me you were with a girl” he replied.

“I was with my girlfriend” Adrien answered “Marinette Dupain-Cheng, you would like her, she’s a designer” he added.

“I doubt it” Gabriel spat “One of the maids found a pair of womens underwear along with their other clothing garments” he added with a spiteful tone “This is not a girl worthy of your affection if she is simply using her body like a bargaining chip.” he barked “Do you know what a teen pregnancy would do to this company!” he yelled, his fuming tone turning into one of contempt “I have also seen a few of her “designs”, she is not worthy of the title of designer” he said, every word stinging Adriens heart, even Felix winced as he tried to find any way to escape the room without being noticed. 

“It wasn’t like that father! ” Adrien replied in the same angry tone, deciding to defend Marinette's honor “First of all she’s not that kind of girl! And secondly we weren't even dating at the time She simply got stuck in the rain while we were doing a school project, so I dried her clothes” he added calmly “But don't you dare say she isn’t worthy of the title of designer” he warned “she is extraordinarily talented and  _ you _ don't have the right of saying otherwise!” 

“Don't have the right?!” Gabriel asked, getting more aggravated “I  _ am  _ the fashion industry, I have every right to judge her talent” he snapped “if she is so talented then why haven’t I seen any of her work?” he asked, finally calming himself down. 

“You’re looking at her work” Adrien replied, putting a hand against the scarf. 

“Pitiful” Gabriel replied as he stood and eyed the work, running an aggressive hand along the frayed end “No sane designer would be proud of this” he spat, dropping the end of the scarf as if it burned his skin. Adrien simply let out a small laugh as he looked up at his father, all the neglect, pain, suffering and sadness of having an almost absentee father rose in his body, he was no longer afraid of standing up to his father.

“I think the opposite, I think that you are  _ terrified  _ that there is a girl out there who’s claimed my heart, a girl who has more talent than you can even dream of, a girl who you can’t control” he said with a cold tone. “Face it father, you can't control me or my decisions any longer!” he barked.

“You are my son! And you will end this relationship” Gabriel replied calmly “You must stop acting stupid and realize that this girl will do nothing for your reputation, if you desire a girlfriend so much I will arrange a relationship with Chloe Bourgeois or any girl who is well disginuished” he finished as he stood up.

“No” Adrien replied calmly “I wont end it and you cannot force me to” he added. 

“You will end this relationship Adrien” Gabriel warned “You will not disobey my direct order.

“No I won't!” Adrien yelped “I won't end a relationship with someone who I love! You can't even bother to remember my birthday without Nathalie's help, let alone even wish me a happy birthday! I dont understand why it is so bad for me to be happy, to find someone who makes me happier than I thought, why is that so bad Father?” he asked pleadingly. Gabrie; decided to disregard his comment, instead looking at him with his steely blue eyes.

“It is either this family or the girl” Gabriel warned. 

“It’s truly funny how you act like that’ll affect me” Adrien replied “This family is nothing more than a cold signet of despair who will abandon anyone at the first sign of weakness, Marinette wont abandon me” he added “No matter what”

It seemed as if Marinette was having the complete opposite day compared to Adrien, that seemed obvious as soon as she walked into the classroom, instead of angry glares she received sheepish and embarrassed looks. She looked towards the front of the room where Alix stood, awkwardly scratching her neck.

“Hey Marinette” Alix said awkwardly, it took a few seconds before Alix could actually say what she had to “We-all-just-wanted-to-say-sorry” she said quickly, as if the words were falling out of her mouth. Marinette looked towards Alya who shrugged in confusion, both of them had almost no idea as to why they were saying sorry.

“We… We don’t know why we believed Lila, but we’re sorry we did” Alix admitted, allowing the context Marinette needed. Marinette looked around the room, that’s when she noticed that the evil redhead was missing. 

“She just used our weaknesses against us” Kim spoke up “we  _ really _ are sorry” he explained softly “we let all of this happen” he admitted sadly. Marinette felt an appreciative smile form on her face, it could be a trick, but she also knew trusting her classmates was more important, if it was a trick then so be it.

“It’s alright guys” Marinette replied with a dismissive wave of her hand as if what happened didn’t mean anything, because to her it didn’t, even if Lila tried to ruin her life she still had her friends and her amazing partner/boyfriend.

“R-really? You’re just going to forgive us like that?” Max asked, surprised that she could forgive them that easily.

“Of course, you guys made a mistake, and who am I to hold that against you?” She replied with a shrug “It’s in the past, we only have the future to look to now” she added.

“That’s very noble Marinette” Ms Bustier said happily “but everyone it's time to start class” she said as she looked over everyone who was now taking their seats “looks like we’re only missing Lila and Adrien” she said with a shrug. Marinette suddenly realized that her blonde boyfriend was missing, which is odd, especially considering Adrien barely ever missed school, she stealthily pulled out her phone, opening her messages.

**Marinette- hey, are you alright? Schools about to start**

Marinette quickly hid her phone and awaited a reply, one which came quickly.

**Adrien- Sorry, I can't go to school today, it’s a long story.**

**Marinette- Are you alright?**

**Adrien- yeah, but do you think it’ll be alright if I stay with you for awhile?**

**Marinette- Of course, I'll text my parents right now.**

“Marinette, please put your phone away” Ms Bustier called 

“...this is kind of important...” Marinette replied sheepishly.

“Alright, then take it into the hall please” she replied, Marinette nodded as she ran out of the room quickly, dialing her mom as she did so.

“Mom?” she asked as she heard the phone get picked up.

“Yes honey?” Sabine asked, slightly confused as to why her daughter was calling her right then.

“Is it alright if Adrien stays with us? Something happened and apparently he needs somewhere to stay” she explained hopefully.

“Of course, your boyfriend is always welcome, we’ll set up the guest room right now” Sabine replied sweetly.

“Thank you Mom” Marinette said with a sigh of relief “I’m going to go call Adrien, I’ll swing by during lunch break” she added.

“Ok honey, we’ll see you in a few hours” Sabine replied before the call ended, immediately after Marinette called Adrien.

“Hey bug” Adrien said into the phone.

“Hey kitten, my parents are getting the guest room set up as we speak” Marinette responded “Do you wanna tell me what happened?” she asked kindly.

“I… I think it might be a more in person thing to talk about” Adrien replied.

“A-alright, are you sure?” Marinette asked.

“ _ Paw- _ sitive” Adrien replied with a small snicker. Marinette groaned into the phone playfully, her response took a few seconds extra as she tried to hold in her laugh.

“I thought you said you wouldn’t make any more terrible puns” Marinette said with a sigh.

“You forget bugaboo, the deal was if you gave me a goodbye hug I would stop with the terrible puns, but I don't remember a hug, and all my puns are amazing” Adrien replied in his Cat Noir tone.

“You’re impossible” Marinette groaned “and I should get back to class before Ms Bustier gets suspicious” she added “it’s a bit weird here, Lila is missing and everyone apologized to me” she finished

“Y-yeah, that’s weird” Adrien whispered, knowing full well why Lila was out of school “But it sounds like you’re having the good day you deserve” he added. They sat in silence for a few moments, listening to each others gentle breathing “Alright lovebug” Adrien said, breaking their silence “thank you so much… for everything” he added quietly.

“Hey, we’re partners, I can't count the amount of times that you’ve helped me out” she responded “I’ll see you in a few hours kitten” she finished.

“Bye bug” he said with a content sigh.

“Bye kitty” she replied, ending their conversation.

It was no surprise for Adrien to find that being with the Dupain-Chengs made him feel more at home than his fathers house ever could. Not only did it smell like vanilla all the time, but they also fed him nonstop, he had to physically tell them no to prevent himself from getting fat. Then came the guest room, he flopped down onto the bed and it seemed to take him mere seconds before he passed out from the exhaustion of that day. He was only woken up when Marinette gently shook him from his deep slumber, his mind finally registered the girl as his lips turned into a smile. 

“Why hello lovebug” He said happily, his exhaustion breaking through his voice as he tried to prevent a yawn.

“Guess you're a sleepy kitten” Marinette replied “Scooch over” she demanded with a kind tone. Adrien smirked as he moved to the middle of the bed, allowing Marinette to lay down right beside him. She immediately leaned her head against his upper chest as his arm snaked around her hip. She inhaled deeply before letting the breath out of her lungs, turning up to view Adrien’s emerald green eyes.

“Do you want to talk about what happened?” Marinette asked, listening to his steady heartbeat. Adrien was quiet for a few moments, likely thinking about whether or not he wanted to delve into the details. 

“I… I’m…” Adrien stumbled for a few moments before returning to silence. 

“You know, a problem shared is a problem halved” Marinette replied as she tapped his chest a few times with her finger. “It’s ok if you need time before you want to talk about it, and I know my parents wont ask any questions, but it might help to talk about it” she added. Adrien pulled her as close as possible as if she was his life line.

“I know… but can we just take a few minutes and do nothing?” he pleaded “I don't mean nothing, but I mean can we just stay like this for a few minutes before we dive into the problems” he rephrased.

“Of course kitty” Marinette replied happily, nuzzling her nose into his upper chest. That’s what they did, they simply laid together in comfortable silence as they allowed the minutes to tick by them slowly. 

“Oh my gosh! You two look adorable!” Sabine cired

“They look so cute!” Tom added

“Can we please take a picture!” They both begged in unison. Adrien smirked as he looked down at the small girl cuddled up on him.

“On one condition… you send it to me” He said with a small laugh, Marinette rolled her eyes before placing her head back down against his chest. Adrien heard the camera shutter a few times before Tom and Sabine giggled, it didn’t take long before he felt his phone chime. He found that they kept their promise and sent him the picture, he immediately knew he would cherish that photo forever, Marinette had her eyes closed with one of her hands gently placed in the middle of his chest while Adrien looked down at the girl with more love in his eyes than he thought possible. “I… I think I’m ready to talk about it” Adrien admitted while tucking his phone away. 

“...So that brings us here” Adrien finished after telling his story of how he ended up needing to stay with Marinette, who was stunned. She quickly sat up, positioning her knees on either side of his thighs as she slumped down and sat on the lowest area of his thigh.

“Adrien” She started “I… I don't know what to say” she admitted while her shoulders slumped down. “All I can tell you is that you’re the most amazing person I know and I’m sorry that you have to go through this” she finished, upset that she couldn’t think of anything better to say. 

“Mari, I don't need you to say anything, I’m just glad that I have someone to tell” he replied as he hugged Marinette tightly. “I’m glad I have someone who can help me through this” he whimpered, trying to fight back the tears that had been forming since he started the story. He felt Marinette scooch up so that she was sitting on the uppermost part of his thighs, her hands reached around and returned his hug. “I am  _ paw- _ sitively infatuated with  _ mew _ ” Adrien whispered.

“Ugh!” Marinette whined “you really had to add the pun?” she asked. 

“I know you like them” Adrien replied happily “Even if it’s just a little bit” he added while nuzzling into her cheek “Admit it, you like my puns” he requested. 

“No” She replied, blushing heavily from his affectionate touching. 

“ _ Paw- _ lease  _ purr- _ incess” he begged as he loosened his grip on her waist only to gently tickle her sides. Marinette yelped in surprise as she tried to squirm away, her efforts were in vain as Adrien resorted to holding her with one arm while tickling her with the other.

“Fine!” Marinette replied “Your puns aren’t  _ always  _ terrible” she admitted as the tickling finally stopped. 

“Why are you here?” Gabriel Agreste hissed “I thought we agreed that since you failed at your one objective, our business is over?” he asked, standing up straight as usual.

“Mr Agreste, you must hear me out” Lila pleaded, wincing as she moved her dislocated shoulder. 

“And why should I do that?” He asked “Not only did you fail, but you decided to manipulate my akuma and then discover my identity” he growled “If you weren’t a child I would’ve thrown you into the catacombs mere seconds ago” he added as if the words brought him slight pleasure. If there was one thing he hated more than anything it was people breaking  _ his _ rules.

“I know Ladybugs Identity” she stated curtly. 

“Thank you again for letting me stay” Adrien said nervously as they all ate together at a dinner table, something that he couldn’t remember the last time he experienced. 

“Hush” Sabine requested “There’s no need to thank us, you’re family now” she added.

“It will be nice to have a new face around the house” Tom added cheerfully. Adrien couldn’t help but smile, Tom and Sabine hadn’t known him for all that long, but they definitely saw how much he cared for Marinette, and that was enough for them. Adrien couldn’t help but smile as a radio behind them played music, it was a relatively old song playing, one from the sixties, but it was definitely one of Adriens new favorites. Soon dinner was over and Adrien sat on his new bed, allowing himself to relax. 

“Hey” Marinette said softly as she smiled at the boy.

“Hey” Adrien replied happily. 

“Don’t worry, I’m sure you and your dad will patch things up” she states, trying to comfort her boyfriend. Adrien let out a small sigh, meeting Marinette’s eyes with his own, a small sign of guilt coming from them.

“What if I don't want to patch things up with him?” he asked shyly. Marinette’s eyebrow raised instinctively before she started to approach him.

“What do you mean?” She asked, taking a seat next to his legs that laid idly on the bed.

“I mean that my father has been nothing but cold to me” he stated “and I don't think that I want to try and rebuild something that doesn’t exist” he whispered. 

“Adrien” Marinette said, unsure of what to say, she sat silent for awhile before looking up at him “Don't worry about it right now kitty” she requested “things… have a way of working themselves out, trust me” she requested. Adrien smirked, reaching out for her hand, he gently picked hers up and rubbed the spaced in between her thumb and forefinger.

“Always” he responded with a smirk.

“A person with a deep love in their heart, a love for a girl who doesn’t even know your name” Hawkmoth started “A love that must be satisfied, I give you the power to pursue her, make her your own” he added, a satisfied smirk growing on his face “Do whatever you want to Marinette Dupain-Cheng, just give me her earrings” he demanded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to put a trigger warning here, as you can see from the last part of this chapter, the next few chapters will contain some... "violence". Hope you guys enjoyed, and as always, comments are always welcome.


	8. Not Like This

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You Just Gotta Read It

**Fair warning, this next chapter is going to get weird and maybe even “disturbing”. It won't necessarily be overly violent or gory, but it is definitely a touchy subject for some, don't worry everyone ends up fine in the end. Honestly as I read this I realize that this chapter feels really poorly written and I apologize, but I really don't want to have to rewrite this chapter, so please forgive me.**

“Why are you in my bed?” Marinette questioned as she felt Adrien’s arm tightly clung around her waist.

“Mmmmm” Adrien hummed, waking up slightly “I got cold” he whimpered as he pulled Marinette's body flushed against his, her back against his chest “Wanted to cuddle” he added tiredly, placing his nose into Marinette’s hair.

“Kitty” Marinette started, trying to turn in Adrien’s arms, eventually moving enough so they were face to face.

“No” he whispered, interrupting whatever she was going to say, he opened his eyes and looked at Marinette's small form that was curled up against his “Please” he begged.    
“Kitty” she whispered in a small and caring tone “Are you ok?” she asked, placing her hands on top of his chest. 

“Yeah” He replied “I just need you right now” he whimpered.

“Alright” She replied “It’s ok, it’s all ok” she whispered, reaching her hands up into his hair. She felt him kiss the top of her head, as she looked up and found him smiling. “Sometimes I cant believe how lucky I am” she stated, looking into his large and tired green eyes.

“Lucky?” He asked “What about how lucky I am?” He questioned “I have the most amazing girlfriend in the world… and it just so happens that she’s pretty easy on the eyes” he added in a flirtatious tone. Marinette felt a heavy blush as she looked up at him, she quickly moved her hands up to his cheeks and brought his head down to hers, gently touching their lips together in a burst of affection. She felt his hand entangle itself in her hair as he returned the kiss, kissing her with a passion she knew she could easily match. Their innocent kiss ended as their lips separated, allowing Marinette to look up into Adriens eyes with love and adoration. Their breathing was the only noise to fill the silence for a few moments before Adrien spoke up. “That was our first kiss” he said happily.

“First of many” Marinette replied, gently caressing his cheek with the pad of her thumb. 

“Hey Marinette” A redheaded boy stated as he sat next to her in the courtyard.

“Hi” She replied sweetly “Nathaniel right?” she asked. 

“Yeah” He replied “I didn’t know you knew my name” he added.

“Well I do hear it in attendance every day” she joked with a small smile. Nathaniel let out a small laugh before he turned back to look at her.

“Hey so I know we-” he started, but was quickly cut off.

“Marinette, are you ready?” Adrien asked with a smile.

“Yeah” she replied happily “What were you saying Nathaniel?” she asked as she stood up.

“You know what, it can wait” Nathaniel replied, a small smile lining his face.

“Oh, alright” She replied “I’ll see you later” she added with a wave as she walked over to Adrien, leaving Nathaniel in a burning rage, a rage that he easily hid behind his blank face. 

‘She is dating him’ a voice called in his head.

“So what do I do?” He growled in question, hiding his face from public view.

‘You must take her for yourself’ the voice responded ‘ _ by any means possible _ ’ it added ‘but leave Adrien out of it’ it finished as he felt the surge of energy leave his mind. 

“I like your leggings” Adrien said with a sly smirk, building up any amount of fake courage he had in his body.

“Do you like my leggings or what my leggings show?” Marinette asked with a smirk, taking Adrien by surprise. He inhaled sharply as she walked in front of him slightly, causing his eyes to flutter down to her hips, and once again, X rated thoughts filled his mind. Deciding he wanted to take control of the situation he caught up to Marinette and leaned in right next to her ear.

“I did say you were easy on the eyes” he whispered, causing a large blush to form on Marinette’s face.

“That’s just unfair” she replied. Adrien let out a small laugh, taking her hand into his own as they walked towards her home… no.

_ Their home. _

“You’re the one who decided to wear leggings” he teased. 

“Sometimes you are im- _ paw- _ sible” she said with a snicker.

“Did you… Just use a pun?” he asked, a mix of shock and amusement on his face. 

“Yes?” Marinette replied, almost unsure of her answer. Adrien smirked as he quickly picked her up by the waist, causing a squeak to erupt from Marinette.

“Come on Princess! We’re getting married!” he joked.

Nathaniel groaned as he looked over numerous photos in his phone, almost all of them were Marinette taken from different angles. Even a few of them were of Marinette bending down to pick something up, he grinned as he scrolled through the  _ hundreds  _ of photos. All of these photos proved a great reference for his drawings, numerous adult drawings that he had fantasized about multiple times, but now he craved the real thing, and he knew he would have it, one way, or another.

“What’s going on with you two guys?” Alya asked as she watched Adrien’s arm gently trace the curve of Marinette’s hip.

“What do you mean?” Marinette asked with a bit of confusion.

“Well for one” she started, moving her attention to Adrien “You’ve been all touchy feely with Marinette, like you have a hand on her at all times” she started “Secondly, you look like you just want to marry her right now” she added.

“Yeah man, you’ve got lovey dovey eyes going on” Nino replied. Marinette and Adrien exchanged a look.

“We’re really good friends” Marinette replied, keeping eye contact with Adrien, a smirk forming on her face. 

“Now that’s just unfair” Adrien replied, poking her stomach slightly, which then turned into his hand moving onto her hips “I think we’re a little more than good friends” he added. 

“Hmmm” Marinette started “Really good friends?” she suggested. 

“Mmmm Maybe a little more” he replied, pulling her close to him.

“Super amazing friends?” she answered, smiling. 

“Do you guys know we’re here?” Nino asked. Adrien let out a small sigh as he eyed down Nino with a small smirk. 

“Your friends really suck” Adrien whispered, a frown appearing on his face.

“My friends?” Marinette asked with astonishment “Last time I checked, Nino was  _ your  _ friend” Marinette suggested, leaning back on the kitchen counter.

“Well that’s rude” Nino joked. 

“But seriously? What are you guys?” Alya questioned with excitement breaking through her voice. Adrien raised an eyebrow towards Marinette.

“We are super amazing best friends” she replied, an evil smirk growing on her face. 

“Mariiii” Adrien whined, bowing his head down. Marinette smirked in response before turning to Alya to give her a real answer. .

“We’re together” She admitted, allowing Adrien to lean in and give her a small quick kiss on the side of her mouth. 

“Finally” he said with a content sigh.

“Wait? You guys are serious?” Alya asked, expecting them to yell April fools even though it was the start of October.

“Well, we actually haven’t gone on a date yet” Marinette responded, a slight pout forming on her face. Adrien just smiled and leaned in once more, but this time he gave her a full kiss, one that wiped the pout off of her face, and it only ended as a camera shutter surprised them both. 

“That one’s going on my story” Alya whispered as she furiously typed into her phone.

“That ones  _ your  _ friend” Adrien whispered with a smug smile. Marinette let her lips turn into a smile as she looked up to Adrien.

“Come on, we need to get back to school” Marinette started with a smile as she felt him take her hand in his own, turning towards Alya “If Chloe kills me that's on you” she added, a smile still on her face. 

“She’s dating Adrien” Nathaniel groaned “And you want me to leave Adrien out of this!?” he shouted in question.

“You must leave Adrien out of this” Hawkmoth’s voice stated.

“And why is that?!” Nathaniel replied.

“Adrien is important to my plan, important to me, and if you lay a finger on him then I will take away your powers and make sure that you never see Marinette again” Hawkmoth warned, a sever icy tone swirling around Nathaniel’s mind.

“Very well” The redhead said with a sigh as he approached the school and immediately saw Adrien with Marinette, their fingers intertwined. He immediately wanted to separate them by any means possible, but luckily that was achieved by someone else, the raging blonde named Chloe. 

“Adrien!” Marinette yelped as she began darting away from the blonde haired girl who had murder in her eyes. Adrien was quick to intercept and stood in between Adrien and Marinette, afraid of what Chloe was actually capable of doing.

“Chloe, I’d very much like my girlfriend in one piece” He begged, backing up until he felt Marinette’s small hands press against his back. 

“You’re dating Dupain-Cheng?!” she screeched. 

“Yes Chloe” Adrien replied “And you are going to leave her alone because she makes me happy and in the end you just care that I’m happy” he suggested.

“Ugh!” Chloe groaned as she stormed off. 

“That went well” Adrien said happily as he turned and put a hand on Marinette’s back “Let’s get to class princess” he requested. They walked into class and were thankful that no one questioned them as they sat next to each other, well that was a lie, many people questioned it, but no one openly voiced their questions. Soon class started as usual, well almost as usual, for Marinette there was a large difference, that difference was the gentle hand on her inner knee that gently traced small circles repeatedly. After that it was pretty clear to Marinette that Adrien’s love language was touch, no matter what it seemed like some part of Adrien’s body was against hers, and the fact was that she didn’t care, in fact she loved the feeling. His gentle hand tracing circles on her thigh stayed for the majority of class, after all they were only going over the next book they would be reading. No matter how much they would like to think it, they were not the only ones who noticed, Nathaniel looked on from just behind as they smiled at each other knowingly. It made his blood boil and he immediately decided to act on his plan.

The end of the day came and finally Marinette and Adrien separated, only for Marinette to go grab something for another class while Adrien talked to Nino, a perfect time for Nathaniel to launch his plan. Nathaniel slyly jogged over to their art class, the place that he knew she was going to, mostly because she had mentioned leaving a few sketches there. He entered the room, causing her petite figure to turn.

“Oh hey Nathaniel” She said “did you leave something here?” she asked as she held a manilla envelope in her hands. 

“Kind of” He replied, carefully approaching the girl “There’s something I need to tell you” he added.

“Oh?” Marinette asked “Is something wrong?” she asked, starting to become slightly confused by the situation.

“Kind of” he repeated, coming even closer to the girl. Now she was a little bit uncomfortable. “Marinette, I like you” he whispered “I really like you’ he added, almost trapping her in the furthest corner of the room “I like you more than you can imagine” he said, taking one final step, effectively trapping her “And I know you feel the same about me” he finished, trying to read her reaction. She turned away and looked towards the ground as she tried to figure out the kindest way to reject Nathaniel.

“I’m sorry Nathaniel” She started “But I’m with Adrien” she stated, desperately wanting to get out of that situation. 

“I know” He said with a sigh “But you need to realize that you’re supposed to be with me” he added “we’re soulmates! Can't you see that?!” he asked as anger began to creep into his voice, when he didn’t receive a response he doubled down “You know that he’s going to throw you to the curb right when he’s done with you, right?” he asked “Guys like him only want one thing, to get in your pants and then go on their way” he added with a guttural growl. 

“He’s not like that!” Marinette squeaked, deciding to go on the defensive.

“Yes he is Marinette!” Nathaniel retorted “So end things with him and be with me!” he begged. Suddenly the door opened, revealing Adrien. 

“Adrien!” Marinette said with a sigh of relief as he looked at her uncomfortable body language “Come on, let’s go” she requested as she used the opening to run to the blonde, taking his hand. Adrien was slightly confused as his girlfriend tried to drag him out of the room, but he did notice the look of pure hatred coming off of Nathaniel's eyes. He looked at Adrien as if he just punted his puppy off a bridge, deciding to ask Marinette about it later, he allowed himself to be pulled out of the room. 

“What was that about?” Adrien asked, wrapping his arm around Marinette’s waist. 

“Apparently Nathaniel likes me” Marinette said, looking behind her shoulder for the redheaded boy “and he was pretty…  _ passionate, _ about telling me that” she added. 

“What do you mean?” Adrien asked, stopping their progress as they stood in the hallway a good ways away from the art room they had just left. 

“He said that guys like you only want to get into my pants and then leave” she said with a shiver towards the repeated words. Her mouth felt bitter even associating…  _ that,  _ with Adrien.

“What?!” Adrien yelped, surprised by the words that came out of her mouth.

“I know” Marinette replied, matching his shocked face.

“You know I-” He started, but was quickly cut off by Marinette.

“Adrien, I know” She replied, placing a hand on his chest. She breathed in deeply, trying to calm her nerves “I wouldn’t be with you if I thought that’s all you wanted” she added, looking up to give Adrien a smile. He matched it as he put a hand on the small of her back.

“Come on, let’s get going” he requested softly, keeping his hand against her as they walked towards the bakery.

“Hey, where are your parents?” Adrien asked as he ran a few fingers through his hair, wet from the shower he took a few minutes ago. 

“They had some last minute delivery, they’ll be back later tonight” Marinette explained. 

“Alright” Adrien replied “Hey, do you want to watch a movie?” he asked, running his hand along her back. 

“Yeah, I just need to take out the trash” she explained with a smile, taking the white trash bag in her hand. With that she was walking out of the house and right into the dark night of Paris, she carefully walked to the back alley where the large industrial garbage bins were kept. She tossed the white bag into the bin before beginning to walk out the alley, her heart beat increased as she looked around slightly. Then it hit her, she heard quick footsteps and before she could react there was a tight grip against her shoulders as she was forcefully shoved against the wall. Her shoulders were pinned while the rest of her body was pressed up against a wall by someone else's body, essentially rendering any movement from her useless.

“Hey Marinette” Nathaniel said with a breathy tone “I’m glad I found you” he added.

“Nathaniel! What are you doing?!” She yelped, trying to squirm free. 

“Don't you try that” He warned, readjusting his grip before slamming her against the brick wall behind her.

“What are you doing?!” Marinette asked, terrified of what the redhead was planning to do to her, especially considering that they were in a desolate alleyway. 

“I just want to talk” He replied “Talk about how we’re meant to be together” he added, leaning into Marinette. “Adrien cut our conversation short” he said with an upset sigh “And I didn’t get the time to tell you how much I care about you” he finished, smiling.

“Let me go” She demanded through gritted teeth. Nathaniel growled in response, a grimace appearing on his face.

“I dont think so” He muttered “I think you’re enjoying being pressed up against a dirty wall” he suggested “what do you think?” he asked, his devilish smirk appearing on his face again. 

“Let me go!” She repeated, but this time it was much more out of fear than anger.

“Oh I don't think I want to do that, darling” he said sweetly “I think I like the position I’m in right now” he added “The girl I love pressed up against me” he suggested “Yeah, I think I like where I am right now” he finished. 

“Please” She begged “Let me go” she added, trying to move any part of her body, but she soon realized that all her efforts were futile, his legs and hips were firmly pressed against her, rendering her incapable of any movement. 

“No” He growled “I gave you a chance to end things with Adrien and you didn’t take it, so I’m making that decision for you” he said with an evil tone, a fire of passion burning in his eyes. 

“Wh-What do you mean?” She asked, suddenly even more fearful of what Nathaniel was planning to do. 

“Well, like I said” Nathaniel replied, his evil smirk present on his face “Adrien only wants to get into your pants, so I’ll make sure to beat him to it” he whispered. Marinette was suddenly very aware of something firm that was pressed right against her thigh, her thigh which was only covered by the thin fabric of her pajama bottoms. She wanted to cry and sob right then, she realized that he planned to do something extremely heinous to her, to take something away from her, something which she could never have back.

“Let me go!” She screamed “Please!” She begged, tears piercing her eyes. 

“No!” He replied with a growl. “We belong together, and soon you’ll realize that” he added. 

“Nathaniel please!” She begged. Nathaniel ignored her pleas, instead letting out a sigh. 

“I imagined our first time being something a bit more romantic, but this’ll have to do” he replied “Either way, Adrien wont love you anymore once someone else has taken what he wants” he added with a smirk. He removed a hand from her shoulder, replacing his hand with his own shoulder as he reached his hand down. His hand’s entered his pants as he felt around his member in pleasant surprise, that’s when Marinette took her shot, she used a fist to hit the back of his head. Her strike did nothing, as should've been expected since she could only bend at her elbow. Nathaniel looked up with anger on his face, he took his hand and grabbed her shoulders again, removing her from the wall for a second only to slam her back into it, causing her head to collide with the bricks. 

_ Was her vision always fuzzy? _

She looked around as her sight went sporadic, she felt the sickly and sticky consistency of blood flow down her neck as her head throbbed.

_ Does saliva always taste metallic? _

“I cant wait to find out what you feel like” He said with a delighted groan, his hand traveling back into his pants “I can guarantee that it’s gonna feel amazing, for both of us” he added “I’ve dreamt of this for so long” he whispered “I’ve even drawn porn of us Marinette” he stated “In fact I’ve been drawing porn of us for a full year now”. Marinette wanted to throw up, she wanted to melt into the floor and sob, she wanted to stop existing, wanted to wake up and learn that she had never even existed in the first place., and just then the edge of her vision started to become black, not like that changed much from her already blurred view. She was going to wake up and have something brutally stripped away from her by a boy who she barely knew. “Dont worry Marinette, this wont hurt a bit” he said as Marinette heard his pants zipper come undone. This was it, she was losing her virginity by someone who wanted to forcefully take it from her. If anything at least she would be unconscious when it happened.

“I think it will” A voice called out, the only thing Marinette could see was a black outline with little flecks of gold, but the most noticeable feature were the piercing red eyes, and with that.

_ Marinette passed out.  _

**That happened, so now that’s over and we’ve officially reached the beginning of the end for this story, as always leave a comment and I’ll try to get the next chapter out as soon as possible. Once again I’m sorry that this chapter was poorly written and definitely poorly timed.**


	9. The Night Acts

**Very short chapter that’s just explaining what happened right after the last chapter, next chapter will be out shortly.**

Adrien ears stiffened as he heard a muffled yell from outside, while he wasn’t transformed he still had a few of the attributes of his counterpart, one of those were adept hearing. He sat, listening to the muffled talking, and that’s when he heard the voice get panicked and louder. He quickly ran into Marinette's room and up to the balcony, his kwamis following closely behind purely from instinct. He jumped onto the balcony and looked around, as expected nothing was going on up here.

“Trio! Lights out!” He called, being transformed into his alter ego, The Night. He breathed in carefully and blocked out all the sounds.

_ Silence _

He jumped to the roof and listened again, hearing nothing for a few moments before a sound caught his ear.

_ “Adrien only wants to get into your pants, so I’ll make sure to beat him to it”  _ Nathaniel whispered, Adrien wanted to throw up, and he did. Before he could ack he bent over the roof and threw up, his bile making a disgusting sound on the sidewalk below the roof. Quickly remembering what was going on just below him. He jumped down from the roof and landed in silence. 

“I’ve even drawn porn of us Marinette” Nathaniel stated “In fact I’ve been drawing porn of us for a full year now” he added. That’s when Adrien noticed it, his hand in his pants as Marinette had blood dripping down her neck and pooling onto her shoulders, staining her tank top. That was it, he wanted to kill Nathaniel. “Don't worry Marinette, this won't hurt a bit” he added, that was when he heard it, the sinister noise of a zipper undoing as Nathaniel's hand left his pants and started to drift towards Marinette’s waistband, all while Marinette had tears falling from her face as her body started to become limp and her face pale.

“I think it will” Adrien barked, he grabbed Nathaniel's jaw in his hand and lifted him off the ground. He turned to the other side of the alley and threw Nathaniel against the building that stood there, a sickening thud erupted as his flesh collided with the wall. Adrien stared him down as his claws dug into Nathaniel's skin, blood starting to drip from the punctures his claws made. “Do you want to know what it feels like to die?” he asked, pulling him back before slamming him against the bricks again “I’ve always wondered what it would feel like to break every bone in someone’s body” he added, slamming him once more. 

“Why’d you stop me!” Nathaniel screamed, blood covering his teeth. Adrien felt a growl come from his throat, he squeezed down on Nathaniel's jaw and felt the stress that the bones were experiencing.

“I can kill you here” Adrien warned “I could kill you and no one would care” he added, giving the jaw a little more pressure, anything else would break the jaw and any more than that would shatter it into oblivion. 

“Let me go! Me and Marinette are meant to be together! This is meant to happen! I’m meant to have her tonight! Tonight is supposed to be our night! I’m supposed to have my way!” Nathaniel spat, blood pooling in his mouth. “I am entitled to her! She’s mine to do what I want!” He screamed. Adrien’s lower jaw quivered as if he was freezing, but he wasn’t, he was ferocious, if he had decided to ignore the voices then she would be getting raped by now, she would be taken advantage of. If he had waited a few more moments to act then she would be getting raped. Suddenly Nathaniel's jaw popped as half his jaw turned slack as if it was a puzzle piece that didn’t fit correctly. He threw Nathaniel to the ground and put his booted foot on his chest. He raised a fist and brought it down on his face, then raised it again and brought it down, hearing a crack as one of the bones of his face cracked, he raised his fist once more and brought it down again, his signet ring cracking his skull beneath and tearing at the skin of his face as Nathaniel let out a scream. Staring him down, he could kill him right here, he likely would have if not for the small whimper behind him. It was faint and  _ almost  _ unheard. 

_ Almost _

He turned and found Marinette huddled on the ground as she whimpered in pain. He ran to the semi conscious girl and knelt down, picking her up and holding her against his chest, putting pressure on the wound that poured blood from the back of her head. 

“Marinette it’s all right” He cooed “It’s all fine, you’re alright” he said soothingly “Don’t worry I’m here” he added, looking to the girl who turned up at him and gave him a confused and exhausted look “It’s me” he said calmly “It’s Adrien” he stated. 

“Adrien?” A voice called, alarmed, he turned and found Nathaniel staring at him, but this wasn’t Nathaniel's voice, no this was a voice he was extremely familiar with. He felt his eyes prick with tears as he registered the voice, a voice that had hurt him more then he could ever know. 

“Father?” Adrien asked as he noticed the purple butterfly donning the eyes of Nathaniel's face. He received no answer, but he didn’t need one, he knew, it all made sense. Nathaniel spat out more blood as his feet tried to pick him up to escape Adrien. He didn’t care, and he didn’t try to chase as he gently held Marinette in his arms. 

“Adrien?” Marinette cried, pressing her head into his chest. 

“It’s alright baby” Adrien whispered “I’m gonna get you to the hospital and it’s going to be fine” he added, gently picking the girl up who whimpered in pain. “It’s ok, you’re alright” Adrien stated, more to himself than someone else. He knew where the hospital was, that wasn’t the problem, the problem was that the only hospital he trusted was all the way across the city, so he risked it.

_ He stayed in his transformation. _

He ran and jumped as his wings took over, he flew over the city faster than he ever thought possible, the girl he loved curled up in his arms. He ducked and weaved through buildings and overpassings, then he saw it, it was an expensive building, a building filled with doctors who all graduated at the highest level they possibly could. A building that he hated, but he knew that they would be able to take care of her. He dropped down and got a running start, trucking into the doors which flew open. “I need help! She’s bleeding!” he begged “I need a doctor!” he screamed. Many people looked in confusion to see this hero, which only  _ partially  _ resembled Cat Noir, who was screaming for help while holding a girl with matted hair and bloodied.

_ Well bloodied everything _

“Help!” He screamed demandingly, and that did it, a full team of doctors and nurses ran out with a gurney and allowed him to place her down on the bed. They ran her off, telling Adrien to follow. 

“Mr.___?” A doctor asked for his name.

“The Night” Adrien replied, keeping his eye on Marinette. 

“Right” the doctor said as they followed the bed “We normally ask… family?” he asked before he finished his comment. 

“I can't tell you the nature of our relationship” Adrien growled.

“Alright, well normally we ask most...  _ people _ to wait in the waiting room, but if you would like we will let you wait in her room while we bring her to an operating room” he suggested.

“Operating room?” Adrien asked.

“The cut on her head  _ seems _ substantial” The doctor stated “We need to properly care for it, but that’s all” he added “Do you know what happened to her?” he asked.

“A boy tried to…  _ take  _ her” he said softly as Marinette was pushed past doors that he clearly was not allowed past.

“Take her?” The doctor asked.

“Have his way” he mumbled “He slammed her head against a brick wall” he added. The doctor suddenly understood, he nodded as he wrote on his clipboard, a clacking coming from the tip of his pen as he did so.

“Did he” The doctor swallowed “Did he… Did he achieve his want?” he asked.

“No” Adrien replied coldly “He’s hurt badly, he’ll likely need medical attention if he wants to speak again” he snarled, realizing that the voice he had now was nowhere near his actual voice. In fact it sounded closer to the voice of an angry narrator rather than that of a teenage boy, the best way to describe the voice was a low growl.

“Very well, I’ll inform the Police” The doctor said with a small inhale “Would you like to wait for her in her room?” he asked. Adrien merely nodded before the doctor led him into a standard hospital room, at least it was private. The doctor left, closing the door behind him, leaving Adrien to mull over his thoughts in the room. 

“She’ll be ok” all his kawmi’s voices said in his head. 

**Like I said, super, super, super short chapter just to give you gives some context before I can write the next chapter. Hope you enjoyed and as always, comments are always welcome.**


	10. It's Not Your Fault

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You just have to read it.

As Hawkmoth Gabriel could use his powers to obtain the view of his currently akumatized villain, this also allowed him to hear into the situation. All of these reasons allowed Gabriel to hear Adrien revealing his identity. He should’ve expected Adrien to be Cat Noir, in fact after he learned of Marinette’s identity as Ladybug he knew that Adrien must’ve been a close ally of Cat Noir and Ladybug if not Cat Noir himself. What came as a surprise to him was seeing that Adrien had already obtained the other two miraculouses, while he had heard a few rumors of the modified Cat from Lila, he hadn’t expected him to obtain  _ both  _ miraculouses. From what he knew of The Night they always received one miraculous at a time to ease the user into the newly acquired powers. 

“This is not good” He said to himself. That was the truth, it wasn’t good, if Cat Noir had obtained his two other miraculouses then his only semblance of hope was to take out Ladybug before she reached her full power, yet with The Night now by her side until she recovered, it meant his chances of success were already low. Of course he did have his akuma out, but now Nathaniel was badly injured and had failed at the task. He had given Nathaniel the strength to overpower a strong girl, but he also gave him other “powers”, he had given him the will to act on his impulses. “I didn’t think this through” Gabriel groaned. That was a lie, he had thought this through, he simply thought that Nathaniel would’ve attempted rape somewhere other than right behind her house. Overall he cursed himself out that the boy he chose to akumatize was an utter idiot who didn’t know how to perform the task at hand. Now he was left stuck to make a hard decision, he needed to attack Ladybug before she reached her full power or his job would become one hundred times harder. “Time to plan” He muttered to himself.

Adrien very well knew that sitting in a hospital while in his transformation was definitely bringing stares towards him, but right now he felt that leaving the hospital while Marinette was alone wasn’t a good idea, especially after finding out that Nathaniel was akumatized. It definitely didn’t help that Lila was also akumatized, and much like Nathaniel she was also currently missing. Finally there was the object of his father, he had heard his fathers voice as the purple butterfly appeared on Nathaniel's face, but that was still just a hunch, he had no evidence to prove that. All the while this left him wondering if he wanted to hear his fathers voice, if he wanted his father to be Hawkmoth, just so he could know that he really was the monster he made him out to be. All of these problems didn’t help the fact that the girl he loved was lying in a hospital bed beside him, but one question rang supreme in his head.

_ Why didn’t Marinette transform? _

“W-who are you?” Marinette groaned, her half lidded eyes looking at Adrien. 

“It’s me” he whispered, trying to raise the pitch of his voice to his civilian tone. 

“Who?” Marinette asked.

“You’re boyfriend” he whispered, noting the heavy traffic passing by the open door. Her face finally registered his words as she extended a hand towards his own.

“Why do you look different kitty?” she asked, trying to touch his new suit. Adrien moved his chair closer to her and placed her hand against his chest. 

“We have a lot to talk about” He replied “But how do you feel?” he asked. 

“Pain” She responded “Headache” she added, suddenly remembering what had happened “Did he-” she was quickly cut off.

“No” He replied sharply “no” he repeated “No” he said for the third time. 

“What happened?” she asked, moving her hand from his chest to his knee. 

“I… Stopped him” Adrien choked out, trying to tame the lump in his throat. They were silent for a few moments before Marinette spoke up. 

“Thank you” she whispered. Adrien knelt beside her, running his fingers through her hair. 

“You’re ok” he whispered, not sure if he was doing it for himself or for Marinette. 

“I love you” she whimpered, her eyes filling with tears. Adrien was quick, he picked her up and held her head against his chest, carefully avoiding the wound on her head, instead settling for holding onto her neck. 

“Hey, it’s alright” He cooed “It’s ok, you’re ok” he said softly “I’m here” he added, gently running a hand down the length of her hair “I love you too” he finished, hearing her gentle sobs on his chest. He pulled her head off of him and saw the tears falling down her face, he wiped them away with the pads of his thumbs. “You’re ok” he stated “listen to me Marinette” he requested “I will  _ never  _ let anything happen to you” he promised. Marinette nodded a little in his hands, meeting his eyes with her own. She sat there looking up at him before he winced, an apologetic look blooming on his face “I need to go” he whispered. 

“No” Marinette stated flatly.

“Marinette” Adrien started “I might know who Hawkmoth is” he added.

“No” She responded “You have to wait” she begged. 

“Marinette, I… I can't” he replied “I need to do this”

“No! You need to wait” She begged “You can't leave” she pleaded. Adrien let out a sigh, he looked at her and her pleading eyes, begging for him to stay.

_ He knew he couldn’t stay. _

“Marinette, I need to do this” he replied “It’s my job to make sure nothing happens to you” he added, Marinette grabbed his wrists with her hands as he tried to slip them away.

“No!” She yelped “It’s too dangerous!” she cried out.

“Marinette, it’s alright” He said soothingly. He took a deep breath in, he had to do this, he didn’t have much choice, he had to know. “I promise you, I wont engage” he stated “I’ll just go and see if I’m right, I wont do anything rash” he promised “Ok?” he asked. Marinette let out a sigh, trying to sort out all the thoughts in her head. 

“No” She responded “This is something we do together” she demanded “We’re a team we take down Hawkmoth together” she demanded.

“Marinette, if I wait any longer he’ll know” He responded with a sigh “I need to go” he repeated. Marinette thought for a few moments, wincing from the oncoming headache that she was experiencing.

“You’ll come back?” She begged, not so much asking as she was demanding.

“I promise” He replied. 

“Don’t engage!” She stabbed. 

“I won't” He promised, he gave her a smile, trying to do anything to calm her nerves. They sat in silence for a few moments before Marinette spoke up.

“I thought I would get away” She whimpered.

“What do you mean?” He asked. 

“That’s why I didn’t transform” she admitted “I thought I was going to be able to escape, and when I tried… that’s when i…  _ he _ slammed me against the wall” she added. Adrien nodded a little, understanding that she was protecting her identity first and foremost. 

“Alright” He said calmly, realizing he was still in transformation “get some rest, I’ll be back” he said.

“Promise?” Marinette asked.

“I promise” Adrien responded, giving her head a gentle and tender kiss. 

There it was, the Agreste mansion, a place Adrien had come to hate, but he had to enter one last time. He flew into the opening of what he thought to be a greenhouse, it turns out he was right, but only partially. He landed and rolled onto his feet, hearing thousands of wings fluttering around him as one human figure stood at the back of the room.

“I thought you wouldn’t come” His fathers voice called. 

“I just needed to know whether or not my father really was as evil as I thought” Adrien replied. 

“Hmm” Gabriel hummed in contemplation “I don't really think I’m evil” He responded. 

“I think once people find out that you organized an attempted rape that you are much more than evil” Adrien responded. 

“Once you know my reasoning then you don't think so” Gabriel responded. 

“A justification for evil doesn’t make you innocent” Adrien responded, his wings phasing back into his suit.

“What does that make you then?” Gabriel hissed.

“Teetering on a fine line” Adrien suggested “The difference is I will always fall into the light, while no matter what justification you have, you’re already shrouded in the darkness” he responded.

“I suggest you see something first” Gabriel suggested, Adrien followed his father through the room, eventually reaching a lightswitch. He flicked it, covering the room in light as thousands of butterflies were revealed, but one thing stood out among others. 

_ A casket. _

No, that wasn’t a casket. It was a glass sarcophagus where his mother lied, multiple light’s donned the sides while his mother was frozen in place.

_ No  _

This wasn’t his mother, this was his mother’s body permanently in a state of unrest because his father couldn’t accept the loss. His lips twitched as he overlooked his mother, angrily staring over the corpse. “Give me your miraculous!” He demanded “Give it to me!” He cried out, like a child demanding its toy. 

“Cataclysm” Adrien whispered.

“No! What are you doing!” Gabriel screamed.

“Forgive me mother” he begged “We both know I must do this” he whimpered.

“What are you doing!” Gabriel hissed, spittle coming from his mouth. 

“Finally putting her to rest” He whispered, placing a hand onto the sarcophagus. As if for cinematic effect the coffin cracked, revealing deep purple cracks that seemed to shine before it completely shattered, ash falling to the ground, leaving no trace of his mother. A tear fell down his cheek before he swung around and caught the staff that was swung at his head. 

“Why?!” His father cried “Why?!” He begged. 

“Because she needs to be at rest” Adrien responded.

“We could have had her back!” He screamed, removing the staff from Adriens hands as he threw it at his head again, only to be caught once more. 

“There’s a cost to every action father” Adrien stated, trying to fight back silent tears “I’ll pay for mine and you’ll pay for yours” he whispered.

“My son… the philosopher” he suggested. 

“You’re evil” He replied “and if mother saw you know she would’ve left long ago!” he yelled. Gabriel growled as he hopelessly swung his staff at his son.

“Bastard!” Gabriel screamed angrily. Adrien didn’t answer, instead throwing the staff to the ground and starting to walk away, his wings reappearing “So you’re just leaving?!” Gabriel asked.

“Yes” Adrien responded “I’m sorry that this is the life you chose” he whispered. Gabriel let out a sickly laugh, turning up to view his son. 

“She’s going to die” He laughed. Adrien turned to look at his father, still on his knees.

“What do you mean?” He asked.

“Marinette” He growled “You didn’t let me reach my bargaining point” he stated “So a few visitors are on the way to your precious Ladybug” he laughed.

“How do you know where she is?!” he screamed in question. 

“Please Adrien, I have many friends all over” He suggested. Adrien felt his heart fall, he had brought Marinette to the one hospital where his father knew the majority of the staff, after all he had donated a lot of money to that specific hospital. He froze, he had left her alone at the hospital to pursue his father, he had caused all of this didn’t he. 

“I can still wish her back, body or not” Gabriel said to himself. 

“What have you done?” Adrien asked.

“Funny, I thought that was my line” Gabriel laughed.

“No… you were upset that I cataclysmed the body, why are you so calm?” he asked “You’re lying aren’t you?!” he yelped. 

“All a ruse” Gabriel responded “And I’m sorry to say that you are too late” he added with a snicker. Adrien ran and jumped out of the observatory, praying that his father was lying, he would get there in time and Marinette would be fine.

_ Right? _

His wings carried him as fast as possible as he approached the hospital, this time he didn’t bother with the door, instead flying through the window, glass shards flying everywhere as the cold air pierced the room. 

_ He was too late.  _

“If I can't have you, no one can” Nathaniel laughed, removing the long scalpel from the girl's chest. 

“No!” Adrien screamed, but Nathaniel ran off before he could act, taking her earrings with him. “Doctor!” he screamed, catching her body which was falling limp, his transformation released as Marinette looked at him with tears in his eyes. 

“My kitty” She whispered. 

“Hey, it’s alright, you’re ok” He said, tears falling onto her bloodied skin “You’re ok, the doctors are going to come and you’ll be just fine” he added, sobbing silently. 

“You came back” she whimpered.

“I promised, didn’t I?” He asked. 

“I love you” She responded, her voice getting soft.

“I love you too baby” he replied “Don't worry, you’ll wake up and we can go, we can go anywhere you want ok?” he asked “we can leave this all behind” he suggested.

“That sounds nice” Marinette stated, her voice getting quieter by the second.

“I know, and we’ll be together” He said, tears falling “We can buy a house, get a little puppy” he proposed. 

“Ok kitten” She replied. “It’s not your fault” she finished her body limp and cold in his arms.

_ It’s not your fault. _

**I know, I know, I suck.**


	11. Authors Note

**Hey Guys.**

**I just want to say that I've finished the last chapter and it's coming, but I wanted to say that I had a lot of fun writing this story. It physically saddens me to finish this story, but It's not completely over yet! I'll likely end up doing an epilogue series sometime in the future. Who knows, maybe it'll be even longer than this one was! So, the chapter should be out as soon as I proofread it, but I'm super glad you guys have been with me through this story and I hope to see you all in my future works on this site.**

**-CK203**


	12. The End

_ Desperation. _

That was the only word to describe Adrien at that point. He hadn’t slept in days, yet here he was, desperate and afraid. Afraid of the possibility that Marinette would never be in his arms again, afraid of what he would have to give up to get her back. He hadn’t been able to attend her funeral, knowing the casket and her cold limp body would physically destroy him. So for now he focused on finding his father, Nathaniel and Lila. That’s all he would do for now, he would hunt them down and get the Ladybug miraculous, then he would use the miraculous ladybug to bring Marinette back, reversing the damage that Hawkmoth caused. 

_ Easier said than done. _

Adrien had spent three weeks searching, but now he finally found Nathaniel, and he was scamering away. Adrien puffed and panted and he chased him, pushing past numerous civilians going about their nightlife. He jumped and tackled Nathaniel to the ground, the latter laughing like he had heard the funniest joke of his life. 

_ Adrien forgot. _

Nathaniel is insane.

“Where is he?” Adrien asked, pinning Nathaniel down with his knees. 

“I don't know you tell me!” Nathaniel laughed. Adrien growled again, looking at the jaw that he had previously mangled. 

“Do you want to eat through a straw again?” he barked. 

“Fine, fine” Nathaniel groaned “Way to be a party pooper” he joked. This was what happened when his father pushed him just over the edge, he became full fledged insane. “If Hawkmoth is who you seek, a place of bones is where you’ll meet” He giggled, sending shivers down Adrien’s spine. He stepped off of him and grabbed his shirt collar, pulling him up by the pure strength he held while in transformation. A police officer walked over, handcuffs already uncuffed for Nathaniel who was thrown to the ground by Adrien, his knees and hands making a small noise as they hit the pavement. That just left Lila and his father, and knowing how mischievous Lila was, she was probably somewhere near his dad. Adrien flew off, dropping down on the highest roof he could find to relax on for a few moments. 

_ A place of bones.  _

“A crematorium?” he asked. 

“I doubt it” Plaggs' voice rang. If nothing else, then at least he could fully communicate with his kwamis while in transformation, likely because he hadn’t dropped his transformation in a full week. 

“Cemetery?” He suggested.

“I don't think so, he said bones, not bodies” Pen replied.

“Maybe the Catacombs?” Adrien asked “But there are probably hundreds of miles in those tunnels, how would I find him?” he questioned “It’d be like finding a piece of rice in a hayfield” he complained.

“It’s better than searching all of Paris” Plagg said with a sigh “Plus he holds the Ladybug miraculous, you might just be naturally drawn to the energy of the miraculous” he proposed. Adrien sighed, it was worth a shot. He looked over the sunset that covered Paris in a golden sheet of light.

“I need to do something first” He stated, feeling a tear fall down his face. He once again took off, flying towards the outskirts of the city, he could already see it, the cemetery. He dropped down, taking a roll on the soft grass, making sure not to hit any graves, but as he stood up and walked a few steps he immediately read the name that stood in front of him.

_ Marinette Dupain-Cheng _

That always hurt. 

“Hey bugaboo” he whispered, flopping down as he sat cross legged right in front of the flat tombstone, he stopped for a few moments, considering what to tell her today. “Everyone misses you” he explained “ _ I _ really miss you” he whimpered, trying his best to remember every aspect of Marinette’s face, he hated to admit that he couldn’t perfectly remember her face. “It’s been hard without you” he whimpered “We’re a team and I failed you” he said, sniffling in the cold air. “But don't worry, I’m going to bring you back” he promised “The right way” he clarified, kissing his fingertips before lowering them to the cold stone. He sighed, this had been done every night for him, but tonight was different, tonight he was going to get her back, he was going to get her back or die trying. “I promise you” he whispered, staring at the words and the small cross at the top of the headstone. “You tell the big man upstairs that you’re not done yet” he begged, his voice breaking “you tell him that you’re coming back” he sobbed “You’re gonna be back real soon, so you keep your bags packed” he said, a small smile forming on his face as he tried to remember how it felt to hold her in his arms. “Alright Princess, I’m going to go and bring you back now” he whimpered “I’ll see you soon” he whispered, praying that he was right. 

“Do you think he’ll come?” Lila asked, stretching out her sore shoulder. 

“I hope so” Gabriel replied “If he doesn’t then we must go after him” he stated. Lila sighed, wincing as she turned to Gabriel.

“I do this and I can go… right?” Lila asked nervously.

“Yes” he responded starkly “We agreed that once I had both miraculouses then you’re free” he grimaced “Meaning that  _ once  _ I get the Cat Miraculous then you are free to go” he barked. 

“Thank you sir” She whispered, nodding her head appreciatively.

“I do warn you, if you  _ ever _ interfere with my plans again” he started “You will  _ not _ be so lucky to walk away with your life” he spat. 

“Yes Sir” Lila mumbled as she began to walk away.

“One question Lila” Gabriel demanded “How were you able to sever the akuma’s connection to me?” he asked, keeping his eyes away from the girl.

“I’m not sure” She responded “I was just able to kick you out of my mind” she explained. She heard Gabriel breath in deeply before releasing his breath, while he wouldn’t admit it, he was nervous. He was so close to his objective and Lila could see that, all he needed now was the cat miraculous and he would be able to make his wish. However, Lila would be lying if she said she wasn’t scared. He had threatened her life for severing the connection with the akuma, but that is how she went undetected and from what she overheard, he used a similar method to make Nathaniel go untouched. As she knew, it didn’t work, Nathaniel ended up with a jaw that was barely hanging on, forcing Gabriel to use his powers to heal the boy, but that didn’t mean he got away scott free. Gabriel pushed him past the breaking point forcefully, the whole time he did so, he had a smile on his face, enjoying the torment he forced onto the boy who still thought Marinette loved him. This left Lila knowing that she had to oblige, and finally after today she would be free from his torment. 

Adrien fell down to the pavement like he had done numerous times, he stood up slowly as he surveyed the area, looking for a specific manhole that led into the catacombs. It was easy to find, especially since the manhole stood out like a sore thumb compared to all the trash lining the dirty alleyway. He stuck his fingers into the holes and gave it one quick yank, the manhole pulling off with ease. He looked down into the dark tunnel, his night vision coming in handy for this particular task, it looked like he would be trudging through some water. With a sigh he fell into the manhole, his suit sending disgusting grey water in every direction as he looked around the sewer. To say it smelled terrible would be the understatement of the year, that was obvious, he couldn’t find a way to possibly describe the stench. Stench or not, ge trudged along, the water splashing around his ankles. It only took a few steps before he found a corridor, an uprising leaning straight into a tunnel filled with bones. His heart rate increased substantially, causing him to breathe in, ignoring the smell infiltrating his nostrils, he let it out as he walked into the tunnel, knowing his father was inside. He could feel the energy of the dual miraculouses near, so he followed his heart in hopes that he would just be able to find him. While he worked on that, he considered that Gabriel wouldn’t be alone, no, he would definitely have backup in some way, shape or form. This was way to important for his father not to have some sort of backup.

“We didn’t know if you’d come” a voice called, echoing throughout the chasms of the tunnel. 

“I didn’t have much of a choice did I?” Adrien called back, looking around for the figure speaking to him “Where’s my father?” That much was easy to tell, whoever this was, it wasn’t Gabriel. 

“Adrien” The voice said quietly as if in realization “Your father told me that you would be coming” they responded. 

“And where is he now?” Adrien asked, moving in slow circles to be sure he couldn’t be snuck up on.

“He needs a few moments” they called back “so right now all you have is me” they stated. That’s when he felt it, the presence of an akuma. He could feel the small shift that their feet made in the mud below them, they were quiet, almost so quiet that he didn’t hear their footsteps running towards him. 

_ Almost. _

Adrien spun, catching the attacker by the throat. 

_ Lila. _

“Nice to see you again” Adrien said with a smirk, throwing her down to the ground. 

“I wish I could say the same” Lila growled, scurrying to her feet. 

“Another akuma?” Adrien asked, getting in a defensive stance. Lila just gave him a stare as she readied her fists. “What are your powers this time?” he asked. Once again he received no answer as Lila tried to charge him again, he dodged her small fists as she tried to subdue him. “I see you're just the distraction?” he asked, pinning her against the wall “Just tell me where he is” Adrien demanded. She didn’t answer as she squirmed, trying to escape. Adrien let out a sigh, noticing the necklace that was once again on her neck. He grabbed it and crushed it, allowing a purple butterfly to fly out. He grabbed the akuma with a clenched fist. Thinking about Marinette for a few moments brought tears to his eyes, but it also cleansed the akuma. “Leave Lila” he barked angrily. He dropped her back in the mud before storming off in search of his father, ignoring the tear slipping down his face. He heard the girl scamper away quickly, no longer under Hawkmoth's control. Her footsteps died out as he walked down the long tunnel, no corridors or openings apparent to him. Just as sudden as he would expect, the tunnel opened up into a large room, one where his father stood calmly.

“I see Lila didn’t give you much trouble” Gabriel murmured.

“No… But I believe you made her weak on purpose” Adrien suggested.

“Indeed” He responded matter of factly “I couldn’t waste power on her” he stated “Today is a big day son, today is when we get your mother back” he turned around “So give me your miraculous” he said as if he was entitled to the ring. Adrien looked at him dumbfounded for a few moments, processing what he had just said.

“Father, you cannot possibly still believe that I will let you make that wish” Adrien hissed. Gabriel's expression grew cold, staring down his son.

“You cannot possibly still be choosing that girl over your own mother!” Gabriel responded, turning Adrien’s question around.

“Mother is gone!” Adrien shouted “She’s been gone for a long time!” He yelped “I can still bring Marinette back! Without using the wish!” he added, getting passionate about  _ his  _ reasoning.

“Adrien! This is your mother!” Gabriel hissed. Adrien just stared him down rather than responding to his comment, getting ready for whatever could happen in these next few moments. Gabriel sighed “If you choose not to give it to me then I must take it” he growled “if it be from your corpse… then so be it” he barked. 

“So be it” Adrien repeated. They stood for a second, not sure if either were truly ready for what was to come, then Gabriels face stiffened, he let out one last sigh. 

_ Then he charged.  _

He ran at Adrien with his staff in hand, which in turn thrusted Adrien into the same action, charging at his father. They collided in a bundle of limbs as Adrien tackled his father to the ground, throwing multiple fists in the face of his father who desperately tried to block his blows. He took his staff and jabbed it in Adriens side, causing a yelp of pain to escape Adrien, another stab in his side that made him want to curl up and hold his kidney. His father shoved him to the ground and stood up, placing his foot on top of his chest. He raised his staff and swung it across Adrien's face, making a sick cracking noise as it connected. Adrien could feel blood start to fill his mouth as his father got prepared to swing it again.

_ Adrien was much faster. _

He used the flexibility he contained to wrap his leg around his father and forced his knee to buckle, sending him falling to the ground. Adrien rolled and scampered to one side of the room, spitting out the metallic tasting blood from his mouth which revealed that he had lost at least one tooth. “You truly are lost” Adrien spoke bitterness flowing from his voice while eyeing down his father, who was slowly standing up. 

“Me?” His father asked “You’re the one choosing a girl over your own mother” he spat “A girl who was simply using you?” He asked “A girl who was using you just to get further in fashion? A girl who was undeserving of you?” he spat “A girl who was undeserving of the wealth and protection this family offers!” he snarled “She was nothing! The world is only a better place now that she is dead!” he smirked “I am glad that I am the one who can say I caused her death” he said with a laugh “The only thing I’m upset about is how she wasn’t  _ raped _ before she died” he said, his laugh turning into a full and hearty chuckle. 

“You bastard!” Adrien cried, tears rolling down his cheeks, his lower jaw quivering “Whether you like it or not father she was stronger than you’ll ever know!” he barked “She beat you in every way shape and form! If she were here right now she would’ve already beaten you!” he shivered, remembering her limp body “Lucky for both of us, she doesn’t know what’s going on here… so when I _ kill _ you, I won't need forgiveness” he hissed. Gabriels laughter ended as he stared down at his son. 

“I’ll give you one last chance” He stated “give me your miracu-” He couldn’t finish his statement, majorly due to the fact that he was quickly pinned against a wall, red eyes tearing a hole into his soul. Adrien snarled his teeth as he stared his father in the eyes, he smirked once he noted the fear in his eyes. He threw him to the side, letting him slide on the ground before he pounced. He jumped on top of him and pinned him down with a smirk. His fists moved on their own, pounding down on his father’s face, his ring tearing chunks of flesh. He picked his father up by the jaw, bloodied and bruised, but that wasn’t the end, soon he was being repeatedly getting slammed into the bones that lined the wall. Adrien put pressure on his fathers jaw, feeling the bones tense as they threatened to shatter under the pressure. 

“I’ll give _ you _ one last chance” He growled “Where is the ladybug miraculous?” he asked. When all he received was a groan in response he shook his head in regret, his eyes fluttering down to his own miraculous. “I gave you a chance” he whispered, ripping the miraculous from his shirt while simultaneously slamming him back into the wall. There he was, Gabriel without the hawkmoth miraculous, he was passed out and bleeding, part of him wanted to end him right there, but the other part knew that if he did that, he would never forgive himself for falling into the dark. Adrien searched everywhere for the earrings and conveniently found them tucked away in his father’s suit pocket. “I’m surprised he didn’t hide them somewhere” Adrien commented. Suddenly, he felt all the power leave his body as he was forced out of his transformation, his three kwamis looking at him with hopeful expressions. 

“He likely wanted to make the wish right away” Plagg suggested. Adrien nodded a little, quickly putting the earrings on, allowing Tikki to appear, exhausted. 

“Miraculous Ladybug!” Adrien yelled with hope and happiness, the words seemed to go on forever. 

_ Nothing. _

Nothing happened, no butterflies flew, nothing changed, absolutely nothing happened to affect the world.

“This cant be right” He mumbled, looking at the exhausted Tikki.

“Adrien” she whispered, her own throat getting tight “The miraculous ladybug won't bring her back” she said regretfully.

“What… what do you mean?” He asked, fearful. Tikki breathed in deeply, looking to Plagg for assistance. 

“Adrien” Plagg said breathlessly “She can't be brought back by  _ using  _ the ladybug miraculous” Plagg stated.

“You need to use the wish” Tikki added sadly.

“No!” Adrien responded “I cant do that!” He yelped “There needs to be another way! Please!” he begged. 

“Adrien” Plagg stated calmly “It was always going to end this way” he added.

“No matter what happened, either hawkmoth would’ve used the wish, or you would’ve used it” Tikki spoke “When we were assigned to you, we knew it would only end in either of those” she whispered. Adrien knelt down, he held both of the miraculouses in both hands, but he couldn’t do it.

_ Could he? _

“Please” He begged “There needs to be another way” he stated “I mean, The wish has consequences! I can't wish her back when I dont know what the consequences are! It could be that I can never see her again! Or that she forgets who I am! There needs to be another way!” He demanded, starting to hyperventilate, an anxiety attack on its way. 

“Adrien” Tikki said calmly “it’s alright” she whispered, nuzzling into his cheek “But you need to do this” she said in a calm and smooth tone.

“She’s right Adrien” Plagg replied “If you don't do this, then Hawkmoth will win” he added. Adrien looked down at the two miraculouses, turning over the earrings in his hand sadly. 

“This is the only way to get her back” Tikki said, carving the fate in stone. He breathed in and out for a few moments. 

_ It was time. _

He carefully removed his ring and gave it a look, and then he placed it in the other hand with the earrings. As if perfectly on commands a blaring light erupted, blinding Adrien for a few moments.

_ Did I even wish for anything _

Adrien thought. He had no idea it would just happen, choosing his biggest wish for him, but no matter what he knew, Marinette was the one thing on his mind. He let out one last quick breath as the light got brighter, and then he heard one last thing.

“See ya kid” Plagg’s voice rang out “You were the best Cat Noir I’ve ever had” he said sadly, his voice cracking. 

“Tell Marinette I’ll miss her” Tikki’s voice rang out.

_ Wait. _

What did that mean? What did she mean that she’ll miss Marinette. By the time Adrien had the thoughts going through his head, it was already too late.

_ Black. _

“Adrien!” A voice called “Adrien!” The voice yelped. Adrien felt his eyes flutter open tiredly, his head feeling like he had just dolphin dived off of a skyscraper.

“Mmmhmghh” He groaned, looking around for the voice. 

“Adrien, are you ok?” The voice asked. He finally found it, in front of him there was an asian girl with a plaid skirt, white blazer and a tie that matched her skirt. 

“What happened?” he asked, extremely confused by the situation he was in. 

“You tripped and hit your head on the corner of the staircase” she stated with a small laugh. Adrien winced, rubbing his eyes as he tried to remember what he was doing before that. 

_ Then it all came rushing back to him. _

He jumped up and looked around him, he was at the school.

“Woah!” Adrien yelped, looking down “when did I get taller?” he asked. He was definitely taller, that was easy to tell, he was probably in the mid six foot range by now. 

_ Could I have grown six inches in that time? _

No, that definitely wasn’t possible.

“What?” the girl asked “Do you not remember the growth spurt you hit when you turned seventeen?” she asked with a giggle.

“Seventeen?” he asked, the last time he checked, he was definitely not seventeen “Who even are you?” he asked.

“Kagami. Your girlfriend” she replied, no longer amused. 

“I have so many questions” Adrien started “First of all, I’m seventeen?” he asked “Second of all, you’re not my girlfriend, and thirdly, where is Marinette?” he demanded.

“Yes, you’re not seventeen, you’re eighteen, I am your girlfriend of  _ two _ years and Marinette is likely in the school” she said “We really should get you to a doctor” she stated carefully, but it was too late, Adrien was already running into the school. His shoes made squeaking noises as he ran through the school, the freshly polished tile right beneath his feet. 

“Marinette!” he called, throwing open doors to look in classes “Marinette!” he yelled again, receiving looks of confusion and worry as the boy ran through the school. Right as he was running past a corridor he saw it, a group of student’s mumbling to themselves confused, he tripped as he tried to turn, his knee ramming into the cold cement floor. The pain didn’t bother him, instead he ran through the students, turning into the room where the commotion was. That’s when he saw it, Marinette in the corner crying and screaming into her knees while a redheaded boy and a boy with black hair and blue tips tried to calm her. He pushed through everyone before pushing the two boys away while kneeling down next to Marinette, suddenly very aware that one of the boys was Nathaniel, but it didn’t matter. 

_ This wasn’t their world. _

Marinette opened her eyes and found Adrien, immediately latching around his waist and sobbing into his chest. 

“Marinette” Adrien whispered “It’s ok” he said softly. She continued to cry into his shirt, making his shirt wet with the salty substance. Adrien quickly picked her up and placed her in his lap, his own tears coming into his eyes, before they could escape he shoved his nose into her hair, overcome by the comforting scent of vanilla and tea leaves. A few tears rolled down his cheek, but these were tears of joy. “It’s ok” he whispered “Don't worry” he added. “We’re ok” he stated, giving her head a kiss. She finally looked up, red and puffy eyes, she gave him a wary smile before jumping up and kissing him.

_ “We’re ok”  _

_ The End.  _

**That’s it I guess. That’s the story. I will be starting a new story soon that will be about Adrien and Marinette set after Cat Blanc with a few added details of my own. If you’re interested I suggest just checking my account for that story, I’ll likely post it sometime soon. Thank you guys for joining me on this ride and I hope I see your names on my next stories. My newest story is called When The Dream Ends, check it out if you would like to.**

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and suggestions are always welcome and appreciated!


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